Death and the Lady
by OneThousandRevisions
Summary: Life was stolen from her. Now she deals in death. One motley crew of pirates must teach her to live again.
1. Prologue: Into the Abyss

Author's Note: This is hardly my first foray into the world of fanfiction, but please bear with me as it has been some years. This character, and her own unique storyline that meshes with the original, keep coming back over and over again. I tried working on this several times, and feel that I need to finish it, or it will continue to cause me to lose sleep.

I've been an avid reader for years, and am well aware of the views many readers have about OCs. Forgive me if I don't care; if you have any objections to a female OC being a main character and plot point, please do not continue. I feel that there is a serious lack of strong female characters in the One Piece universe, especially those that can compete with the boys. I do hope that the story itself is strong enough to keep those in doubt interested, however. This will begin sometime before Luffy and Zoro meet Nami, so quite early, however this will absolutely not be a rewrite of the series with a new character thrown in to sit on the sidelines and observe. Just like ripples in a pond, if you change one little thing, it goes on to throw the rest of the universe out of balance, and that is exactly what is likely to happen here.

This plot bunny made itself first known years ago, but college and two jobs stopped me from having time or motivation to work on it. Unfortunately, updates may be sporadic, as I am still working two jobs. Hopefully one day I will finish this monstrous undertaking.

Now, if you've made it through all of that nonsense, please, read on!

Disclaimer: Shouldn't it be obvious that, posting on fanfiction dot net, I do not own any of this unique universe? That privilege belongs to Eiichiro Oda.

_**Seven Years Ago**_

It truly was not that long ago, but to me it seems like a lifetime. They came on the tide, just as the morning fog gave way to a golden dawn over the sea. At first, we welcomed them, as we did all ships that docked in our isolated port. These were few and far between, and we eagerly awaited news of the world outside.

The sailors wore nondescript uniforms; they were like none we had ever seen. We imagined they were privateers, perhaps for a new shipping company that was exploiting our out-of-the-way trade route. For our little community, that would have been good news. Just imagine all of the interesting things the new ships would bring, they said. There was no reason to fear. Our forefathers, who had sought a hidden homeland for decades, were simply frightened of change.

The sailors dispersed among the villagers, interacting with them, asking questions and delivering news. Much later, I realized they were studying us. For days they remained, stocking and repairing their ship. Then one day, they announced that they would be leaving early the following morning, and would not forget the kindness shown to them.

I awoke before dawn, in that time between night and day when the world is swathed in dove gray shades, to watch the sailors depart. My adoptive brother heard me tiptoe out of our room and followed. We lived outside of town and had quite a long way to go to reach our goal. We raced, barefoot, along the outskirts of the village, desperately trying to keep our laughter unnoticed, down the hillside to the docks. Just before we drew in sight of the water, the world turned on its head.

A massive boom followed by the unmistakable sounds of destruction resounded in the morning air. Another followed, then another, and the screams of confused, just-woken village folk came swiftly after. The smell of smoke began to dominate all others on the breeze, and my brother and I froze, terrified. What could possibly be happening? Had pirates descended upon our tiny island to rape and pillage and burn? Had enemies of the unknown privateers followed them here?

My brother and I exchanged glances before turning and fleeing to our parents' home in the hills. Our flight passed in a blur of green and panting breath and fear. When we arrived, all the air fled our lungs and we could only stand rooted to the spot, some yards away from our home.

My vision blurred with tears and smoke and ash, and I choked on the rank odor of burning flesh. I knew our parents and our sickly little brother were inside. Figures surrounded our home, wearing nondescript uniforms that we had come to know very well in the last few days.

That was my first dose of betrayal, my first lesson of the world outside our tiny island community.

As we stood, like stone, gaping in grief at what had become of our lives, a thousand thoughts flew through my head. Where would we go? How would we survive? We were only eleven. How could someone, anyone, a member of the human race, do this to others? And above all, why?

Then hands were seizing my brother and I and we were hauled bodily toward the port. My brother was wailing, clawing, and kicking, his screams reverberating in the otherwise quiet forest. It was too quiet now. The sounds of chaos from the village had died. As we neared, echoes of his cries rose from several areas, all children, screaming for their lost parents, siblings, neighbors. Smoke drifted through the air, thick and cloying, and everywhere lingered the smell of death. We were stuffed onto the ship, moored between two destroyed and sinking fishing boats. It seemed only moments before the lines were cast off, the anchor weighed, and oarsmen at work turning the ship from the bay. The sails were unfurled, and an east wind, a wind that rarely blew over our island and always meant ill, filled the canvas, snapping the lines tight. And we were gone.

Sitting in the hold with seven others besides my brother and I, I let the tears fall and clutched to my last friends and family. They were my lifeline. In the dark and dank, with the waves lapping around us, I could not fathom the purpose these men had for us. Even then, I understood that it could be nothing good for any of us. It was then I decided that I could not follow the Way of Water, the ways of my people, the ways of peace. In my young heart, I could think of nothing but revenge, and our old ways did not allow for violence of any kind except in the most dire of circumstances.

At the age of eleven, I had already stared into the abyss. The darkness stared back, and it swallowed me whole.


	2. Chapter 1: A Plan Takes Shape

_Warnings: There be spoilers ahead for the early parts of the One Piece saga and a few mentions of things later, but I doubt anyone is going to worry about that at this point. Mentions of violence are also here. This story is rated M as a precaution, as some parts may get very dark (while others will not be), as is the nature of One Piece itself._

The East Blue is the most peaceful of all of the oceans in our world. At least, that is what I was told. And there we were, bringing blood and ashes into this gentle quarter. It made no difference if we had no objectives to complete, no missions to carry out. The things we had done in the name of order could never be removed from our souls, the blood of hundreds, if not thousands, staining us red. This outpost was just that: a removed, barren lump of rock on which to make a tiny base, should it ever be needed. Unrest here was rare, so the offices and barracks were small, and, at least for the moment, abandoned. Minor officials ordered crewmen to begin cleaning and getting systems online for at least temporary habitation the moment we made landfall.

Recently, there had been reports of two power players in the world's politics being sighted in the East Blue. One of the Shichibukai, Hawk-Eyes Mihawk, had left his home in the Grand Line for parts unknown, evading even the most discreet surveillance relays. More interesting was one of the Yonko, Red-Haired Shanks, making his own way into and out of the East Blue on a more regular basis than was usual over the last several years, as if he was checking up on something or someone. Everyone in our organization seemed to feel that something loomed on the horizon; the Great Age of Pirates was quite young, and seemed to only become more chaotic as the years passed. We had not seen the end of upheaval. Now, I realize Gol D. Rogers's execution was only the beginning.

With nothing better to do, no orders to follow, I made my way slowly to the peak of the little, rocky island. No matter the environment, friendly or otherwise, it comforted me to know my surroundings intimately. The trek was short, though it took me far longer than I had expected. I had to weave my way through very rough terrain once I rose above the base, scaling paths that were not meant for human feet.

Perhaps it is a good thing that I could hardly consider myself human anymore.

At the very pinnacle of the island, the ground flattened, providing me with a perfect perch from which to survey my surroundings. North and slightly westward of our base's position was the Yotsuba Island Region, a dark line on the horizon. There was a Marine base there, I recalled, though I had never visited it. Our organization and the Marines mixed very little, and there was a certain hostility between the groups, despite the employ of both by the World Government.

Turning and facing almost directly west, I could just see a hint of the Organ Islands. I had never had cause to visit there, and the inhabitants, especially leaders and officials of that area, were fortunate that was so. It meant no one there had fostered any seeds of rebellion against the World Government, a crime punishable by a swift death. Sometimes that death came in the form of a trial and execution. Other times, people like me or members of CP-9 were tasked with the assignment and it was carried out using more secretive means.

I turned next to the east and south, seeing nothing but vast expanses of ocean. I was barely a thousand feet up from the shore, but I felt in that moment that I was at the very top of the world. Behind me and down, to the northward shore, was our base, but no sound of the renewed activity there reached me. The wind was soft that day, and I was briefly tempted to free my hair from its braid and allow the breeze to toy with it. I had always enjoyed that as a child, I recalled.

Childhood remembrances always turned my thoughts to the reason that I was there, in that moment, under the employ of _that _organization, and I would feel anger rising from some unnamed place deep inside me. My emotions were usually locked in that place, a place so dark and cold and thickly walled that there was no escape. Except for that rage. It was a smoldering forest fire, waiting for its next breath of air to blaze anew.

Perhaps they sensed it, and that was why they removed me so far from my home in the New World. Perhaps here, on the other side of the globe, they could more easily control my actions and movements. After all, they still held my brother. I hadn't seen him for a very long time, nearly four years, but he was out there. Somewhere. One day I would find him.

No matter what their silly reasons were, they had played right into my hand. It was from here that I would make my escape, I mused. I had acted the part over the years. I was the obedient tool, the scalpel or the hammer as their whims directed. Their hands had forced me to endure tortures that I do not to this day wish to speak of, but they had made me stronger.

The children that were stolen from my home were part of a program to develop the perfect assassin for the World Government, someone to combat the freaks of nature that had begun to crop up in the world in the days of Gol D. Roger. They said our people were part of an ancient race, nearly eradicated, with special abilities. We knew nothing of what they told us; we were not born for combat, nor had been our parents, grandparents, or anyone we knew. Despite our lack of knowledge, they hoped they could "bring our latent abilities to the surface." I still didn't know if they had succeeded. For me, they had certainly awoken _something_. It was primal, and very, very angry. It wanted to right the wrongs committed against my family and home.

To them, I was simply another piece on a three-sided chessboard, attempting to bring the pirates and revolutionaries into check. They would soon discover that I was no toy, and one of their perfect soldiers would be turned against them. Perhaps I would join one of those other two sides. Or perhaps there was a fourth, waiting to make itself known.

I made my way carefully down to the base a short time later. Lieutenant Humber virtually ignored my comings and goings, at least outwardly. Inwardly I knew he was cataloging my every move, waiting for what he believed was an inevitable break in my patterns of surveillance, orders, missions, and duty. He was not as arrogant and stupid as many others involved with my program. He would be destroyed anyway for his involvement.

I ignored his hard green stare and the thoughtful hand that reached up to brush his gray-speckled goatee as I entered the base proper. He was overseeing the transport of communications equipment, something he did not trust to a junior official. The sailors that had brought us here wore those same uniforms I recalled from my childhood: gray, trimmed in navy blue, with no identifying markings. They leapt out of my way when I neared them, even if they happened to be carrying a crate of sensitive equipment. Those latter few earned the wrath of Humber as he barked at them to be careful.

Inside the base, I was a ghost. The people here were used to people like me. They were spies and the like, as well, and none of them were missing blood on their hands. I fingered the grip of the pistol slung low on my right hip almost unconsciously. The few stares I did receive were void of emotion, of humanity. Clinical curiosity was the best I could hope for. Many of these people had undergone similar training as I had, without the burning need for revenge to keep them somewhat human. My abyss still had one little light to shine on me, even if it was tinted red. Theirs had nothing, and it sent shivers up my spine.

The base consisted of only two low-slung block buildings, one large with two perpendicular wings and the other a warehouse, surrounded by a wire mesh fence topped with coils of barbed wire. The fence was a formality, really. No one lived on this poor excuse for an island, and it was well outside of established trade routes. The forward wing of the main building housed the offices and communications tower, while the one parallel to the hillside contained the barracks with separate living quarters for officers, officials, and me. At the juncture of the two was the mess hall and kitchen. Opposite the L-shaped main structure was the warehouse where stores and armaments were kept.

As I wandered the halls, I made a mental map of the base, checking off surveillance cameras and blind spots. There were few of the former and many of the latter; this base had not been used in some time, and its security was in sore need of updating. I would use that to my advantage long before the required updates were made. By the time I had completed my tour, the plan that had been only a rough sketch before was fully complete. It would only take a few days to enact, and I had become very good at waiting. It had been seven years of waiting until I was strong and knowledgeable enough; a few more days wouldn't hurt.


	3. Chapter 2: A Fortuitous Meeting

_Warnings: All right, so there weren't any spoilers in the last chapter. There won't be many here, either. This little arc will cover our main character's escape, time adrift, meeting Luffy and Zoro, and more time adrift before they manage to land at Orange Town. There is, however, some violence and language ahead, so not for little eyes!_

_Also, be forewarned, the early chapters are a little shorter than what you should get used to later on. I don't aim for a particular length for a chapter - there is a certain stopping place to a chapter that is dictated by the story itself, not the word count. Some chapters may wind up being monstrously long. I will also be using the omniscient or third-person point of view quite a bit once there are more characters and situations to be dealt with despite our heroine's (whose name you will learn soon). Hopefully anyone reading this doesn't mind._

_Now, onward and upward!_

Three days after our landing at the pathetic, unnamed piece of rock, just as the breakfast bell clanged, a series of small explosions rocked the barracks at the main points of entrance and exit. The fire spread rapidly, as the bombs were designed. My room, of course, was empty. A few seconds later, another set of explosives detonated on the office side, either obliterating or trapping any early-morning go-getters.

So early in the morning, I met little resistance as I crossed the yard to the armaments portion of the warehouse. A single guard stood sentry at the entrance, and when the fires started, he raced to the aid of his comrades, many of whom were still in their living quarters. The sun was just rising, leaving much of the yard in shadow, and I was able to creep around the edge of the building and into the munitions locker unnoticed. I raided the lockup, taking what I could carry and what might be useful, including an experimental toy or two that I, myself, had been working on in my down time, before setting a charge near the gunpowder and cannon rounds and leaving quickly.

As I had noticed before, the perimeter fence was a mere formality, and I dashed through the open gate with none the wiser just before the last charge detonated, lighting up the munitions locker. A low rumble signified the almost simultaneous collapse of the communications tower. The accelerants contained in the first bombs had done their work, lighting up the internal structure of the buildings like so many matchsticks.

With food stolen from the kitchens, my weapons, and what little else I could call my own, I wound my way down the path to the dock. The forty-gun frigate that had transported us here was moored in the deeper water of the cove, just offshore, a fishing vessel opposite. A handful of dinghies butted up to the main dock, along with a little catboat. The latter was the one I tossed my packs into before untying its mooring rope and leaping aboard. There was a set of oars for the sole purpose of getting the diminutive vessel into open water, and it was these that I set to with vigor.

Just as I was pulling away from the dock, a gunshot rang out. I jerked at the sound, and pain lanced across my ribcage as the bullet grazed my right side. A second shot followed, this one striking me squarely in the left shoulder from behind. That simply wouldn't do.

In one motion, my right hand found the pistol at my hip and I stood in the boat, turning to face my attacker. I aimed in the same breath, taking into account the light motion of the deck beneath me as it rolled, and fired at Humber. The round struck him in the throat and he fell. I couldn't hear his garbled scream as he died, and I would never know how he escaped the compound to pursue me.

Adrenaline pumped through my veins as I returned to my task of rowing. If Humber had managed to come after me, there were perhaps others, and I needed to reach open water, set the sails, and get as far away from this little hell hole as possible before addressing my injuries. A few minutes later, I cleared the cove and raised the single sail, taking full advantage of the rare east wind that had risen with a red dawn. This time, the east wind had not heralded ill for me.

I thanked whatever gods may be that I had managed to steal a first aid kit from the nurse's station before leaving. With the morning sun now beating fully upon me in my little boat, a thing that was not really meant for travel on the open seas, I awkwardly cleaned and dressed the injuries inflicted upon me by my once-commander. It was by pure fortune that the shoulder wound was through-and-through. It could have just as easily wedged against my collarbone if it had been a little lower. As it was, it passed through the meat of the muscle connecting my shoulder to my neck. It would prove a nuisance to use my arm or turn my head certain ways, but I had dealt with worse before. I packed it and dressed it the best I could. The gash on my side was shallow and rapidly stopped bleeding, but I cleaned it anyway.

Putting my shirt back on, I set my gaze on the western horizon. If I was lucky, I would make it to the Organ Islands before anyone in my organization learned of the disaster at their northern outpost in the East Blue. If I was not so lucky, there had been someone in the communications tower that was able to send a message before it collapsed, and it would only be a day or two before they were on my trail.

_They won't take me back, _I vowed. _Not this time._

I had made two previous escape attempts when I was younger and far more foolish. I had been thirteen when I tried the first time; the second came barely two years later. After each, I was punished severely, and treated to numerous methods of brainwashing. My captors - they were not my employers - could not understand why the brainwashing never quite worked on me in the same fashion that it did the others. I recalled my father's words, oft repeated in my childhood: "You are perhaps the most stubborn, willful girl anyone has ever seen! Your brother has a skull of stone, but I'm convinced yours is iron!" Whatever it was, I held on to my dream of vengeance. They were never able to take my true self, though I hid what made me different from their other pet projects following my second failed escape attempt, making them believe that they had finally been successful.

With nothing to do but think, and occasionally adjust the sail or rudder position to keep me on my westward heading, I settled back and reflected. I didn't know exactly what I would do once I reached civilization. My existence after I was taken had been a lonely one. I had not truly been exposed to society, never engaged in any real social interaction, in the last seven years. Of course I had been planted in plain sight on several missions, getting close to my target or gathering information on another, but all of those situations had been carefully scripted and planned, with contingencies for every imaginable scenario. Without someone barking orders in my ear, I couldn't remember who I was supposed to be or how to act.

I huffed. It was a good thing that a social life was nowhere near the top of my priorities list. As long as I could blend in wherever I went, I would be able to continue with my plans. There was one enormous obstacle left in front of me, however, and that was transportation. The little boat I was in would only get me so far, and I was not so arrogant as to think that I could reach the main hub of my organization in the New World alone. I had to somehow insert myself into a crew to gain passage to, and through, the Grand Line, the most dangerous sea in the world. With no knowledge of sea currents or wind patterns, or of true sailing in general, I was at a loss as to how I could accomplish my goal. Beyond escape from my captors, my plans were foggy at best.

Some hours later, after a carefully rationed lunch of salted meat, crusty bread, and a bit of water, I noticed the clouds gathering on the southern horizon. The wind had altered course slightly and it became difficult to keep the sail full and my boat pointed west. My stomach dropped. A storm could very well capsize me. It wasn't the season for numerous storms, that much I knew, but when they came up that time of year, they could be ferocious, especially the ones that spun off the continent near the Calm Belt and hooked northward. I had heard tales among the sailors I spent most of my life around of such storms, and there I was, alone in a boat little larger than a dinghy, staring into the maw of one.

The storm struck hard and fast, the wind suddenly blowing from the south-southwest, waves driving me far more northward than I cared to go. I was too busy bailing water from my boat to worry about correcting my course, however, and utterly ignored the compass I had brought with me. As long as I was being pushed north, if I made it through the storm I could strike due west again and find inhabited land within a few days. I couldn't help but pray that I did not get washed up near a Marine base.

Night fell, and the sea was plunged into blackness even as it roiled and raged. I was exhausted and soaked to the bone, but I kept bailing. The wide beam of my boat gave me more stability than I expected, and though I was in danger of capsizing several times, I managed to keep it upright. It was the lightning that truly worried me at that point. It struck often, lighting up the ocean much too close for comfort. Once, I felt the electricity as a charge along my skin, and if I hadn't been soaked through, I was certain all of the hair on my body would have stood on end.

I had turned the prow of my little boat northward to ride out the worst of the waves. Some of them rose twenty feet above my head and the spray was nearly drowning as it whipped about in the wind. Water continuously sloshed into the bottom of my craft, and I was hard pressed to keep up with bailing with the tiny bucket that had been left beneath the bench for that purpose. My shoulder was on fire, the rest of my body ached, but I wouldn't stop; my survival depended on it. I was facing the starboard side, throwing water as hard and fast as I could, so I didn't see the reef and outcroppings of rock the waves were flinging me towards until it was too late.

It was the sound that alerted me first, although in hindsight, I should have realized the waves were getting higher as they reached shallower waters. I could hear them breaking over _something_, though it was so lost in the wind and chaos I couldn't pinpoint where it was coming from. Then the rocks loomed before me, a darker black than the rest of the sea and sky, like jagged teeth in dark jaws, just before my boat was flung upon them.

The boat splintered on impact, and I was fortunate I wasn't similarly shattered. I clung to the largest piece of wreckage I could find in the dark, thankful that I had placed the pack of food and first aid supplies on my back in case this happened. Despite my immediate peril, I spared a thought for the weapons I had lost, but I at least had the ones on my person. I only hoped that I would survive this situation for one in which I needed them once again.

Again I was lucky; some angel from above must have been watching over me. I would later discover that had I been thrust into the reef and rocks mere yards to the east, I would surely have died that night. As it was, I passed mostly unharmed - though a little more battered and bruised than I had been - through a narrow series of outcroppings rather than being dashed to pieces on the crest of a low, jagged ridge.

By morning, the storm had blown itself past me, and I hauled myself out of the water. I rested on a slightly curved piece of hull, twice as long as I was tall, but only half as wide. I collapsed onto it gratefully as the sun broke through the cloud cover, and the passing of the waves - now low and gentle and rhythmic - lulled me into the first true sleep I had had in days.

Luffy yawned widely, stretching his arms rapidly out, almost smacking his new crewmate in the face. Said green-haired swordsman looked nearly murderous, growling wordlessly at the near assault.

"You idiot! There's someone else on the boat with you now!"

The captain jumped a little, as if somewhat surprised that there was, indeed, someone with him. He was still getting used to not being alone on the little ship. It had only been two days since their adventure with the Marines and they still weren't sure exactly where they were headed. It had been by sheer luck that the storm the night before had skirted by them without causing too much havoc.

"Oh, sorry Zoro. I didn't see you there," Luffy replied offhandedly. Almost immediately he added, "I'm hungry!"

Zoro huffed a sigh, wondering for the umpteenth time exactly why he had decided to follow this guy. Leaning up from where he had been resting against the mast, he looked around.

There was no land in sight, but at least the storm had fully passed. The sea was calm, the sun only a little way over the horizon. As he swept his gaze back one more time, he spotted something behind and a bit to their south. It looked like some kind of wreckage from a ship that might have been caught in the cyclone from the night before: a lumpy, dark shape against the sunrise. It appeared that someone or something was moving about, but he couldn't be sure.

"Hey, Luffy, do you see that?" he asked, pointing.

Luffy, snapped out of his hunger depression momentarily by curiosity, also caught sight of the object in question. He shaded his eyes against the morning sun, squinting at the distance.

"Maybe it's food," Luffy muttered.

Zoro rolled his eyes at his captain's single-mindedness. "It looks like someone might have been shipwrecked last night."

Luffy glanced at Zoro before turning his eyes back to the object, which was drifting roughly in their direction. After a moment of study, he nodded to himself, then stood, drawing an arm back.

The swordsman watched him in apprehension. "What are you doing now?"

"I'm going to find out what it is!" he replied with a grin. Without further warning, his arm shot out toward the object, stretching farther than Zoro thought possible toward whatever or whoever was out there. Getting purchase on something, he flung his arm back. A split second later, it was obvious he had snatched a person when a startled scream was bitten off mid-note and the figure was hurtling at their boat.

I woke not too long after I had fallen asleep - perhaps an hour or so later - to a clear sky and calm sea. Sitting up on the remains of my boat was more difficult than it sounded. Not only was I immeasurably sore, but the wreckage wasn't particularly stable and tried to capsize one way or another if I moved in the wrong fashion.

Staring around, not seeing land and having lost my compass sometime in the night, I decided first things were first. I unstrapped my pack to check my supplies. My heart fell a little when I spied the sodden food stores - they hadn't been packed for a sea voyage - but I was nonetheless happy to find that everything appeared to be intact. I ate a quick breakfast of soggy bread and cheese before I fully took stock of my situation.

The sun was rising behind and slightly to my right, meaning I was drifting slowly west-northwest. Without knowing how far the storm had pushed me off my original course, I had no idea how long it would be before I struck land. That didn't sit well with me. I had packed enough food and water that, if I carefully rationed it, would last for perhaps two or three more days. I would be hungry by the time I found land, but that could be dealt with then. Then again, land did not necessarily mean civilization or good hunting or fishing, and there was no telling exactly where I would wash up. I sighed, not looking forward to the lean days ahead.

There appeared to be a small vessel ahead and a little to my left, but I had no way of knowing just who or what was on said boat. This not-knowing thing was really starting to get under my skin. I could see no details beyond the shape of the vessel, so I decided to let it go for the time being. At the time, I was content to drift along on my wreckage.

However, drifting wasn't going to get me very far, so I set myself to paddling with my hands, trying to conserve energy and using the quiet undulation of the sea as much as possible. The monotony was already setting in when _it _happened.

A hand shot from the direction of the little vessel, the arm stretching impossibly. The hand gripped my wounded left shoulder before rapidly flinging me in the direction of the stranger's ship. I bit back a scream of surprise, thankful for my quick reflexes as I snagged my pack before I was out of reach. Then I was flying through the air over open water, arms and legs flailing in an extremely undignified fashion.

I crashed headfirst into the owner of that arm and we would have flown right over the bow had someone else not grabbed us and hauled us bodily down to the deck. The person who had initially stolen me from my wreckage recovered much more quickly than I and was leaning over me when I finally stopped seeing stars.

A young man, about my age, with untidy black hair, a straw hat, open red vest and no shirt, jean shorts to his knees and sandals stood looking down at me. He was bent at the waist with one hand on the back of his head, securing his hat back into place, staring at me very intently. I tensed, ready to go for a weapon, ignoring the renewed ache in my shoulder, when he opened his mouth and spoke.

"Ne - who are you?"

His open curiosity and blunt, relaxed manner, along with the abruptness with which I had been thrust into this situation, had me so disarmed that I couldn't even begin to lie. Luckily for me - though I didn't know it then - I wouldn't need to.

"Selkraig Moire. Who the hell are you?"

_Author's note on our heroine's name: "Selkraig" is a derivative of a moniker belonging to Scottish privateer Alexander Selkirk. "Moire" is a traditional Scottish name meaning "star of the sea" - quite appropriate, I suppose, for our One Piece universe - and there are two possible pronunciations for it, depending on the owner's preference. We are going to go with "Mwahr" for our purposes._


	4. Chapter 3: An Uneasy Alliance

_This chapter was a beast to write. The transition from meeting Moire - and the trio's reactions to each other - to the ensuing One Piece arc was difficult to keep from seeming abrupt and stilted. I'm not sure if I succeeded in that respect. On another note, this chapter took a darker turn than I had originally intended. The flashback was entirely unexpected, but that's my general writing process: the story takes over with a life of its own._

_Also, finally you get a description of Moire. It's too bizarre to have a narrator randomly describing herself (as in many first-person narratives I've read) so it had to wait until we were looking through someone else's eyes. Moire's not the type to muse over her appearance in front of the mirror, and certainly hasn't had the luxury of doing so to this point._

_Warnings: Very mild language._

_"Ne - who are you?"_

_"Selkraig Moire. Who the hell are you?"_

Luffy leaned over his new shipmate, grinning almost as widely as Zoro had ever seen and seemingly unperturbed by the slight hostility in the young woman. The latter was on edge, akin to a cornered animal.

"I'm Monkey D. Luffy!" he replied, as though it was the most obvious answer in the world. "And I'm gonna be the Pirate King! And that's Roronoa Zoro!"

The girl swallowed, though she displayed no other obvious signs of nervousness or fear at Luffy's declaration. Eyes the dark, gray-blue of a stormy sea darted to Zoro and seemed to rapidly assess him before returning to the nearer threat.

For her part, Moire didn't really know how to respond to this particular situation. Interactions with other people weren't her strong suit to begin with, but even she knew just how unusual her day had become. Having seen what this self proclaimed pirate could do firsthand, she was hesitant to engage in battle. Even further deterring her fight instincts was the swordsman calmly considering her from his position beside the mast. She did the only thing she could do: ask questions.

"How did you do that?" She gestured in the general direction from whence she had come and back to her new location.

Luffy snickered. "I ate a Devil's Fruit and now I'm a rubber man! Did you know that you talk funny?"

Moire blinked. She hadn't encountered many Devil's Fruit users in her young life, and certainly none as strange as this one. Pirates she had dealt with, but here was a two-man crew lacking all the "argh" and "destroy" mentalities that she associated with their ilk. The latter comment was almost a given. Her people had a very distinctive pattern of speech, and though hers had been softened by the years she had been separated from her family and home, a hint of brogue still remained.

"Everyone where I come from talks differently than you," she answered shortly, not offering any further details and quickly cutting off more inquiry with a question of her own. "So, why exactly did you decide that it would be beneficial to drag an unknown person onto your boat?"

Without missing a beat, the straw-hat boy responded, "I thought you might be food."

A low chuckle from the swordsman drew Moire's attention momentarily away from Luffy. Perhaps this was some sort of inside joke? It was too bizarre to consider otherwise.

"And if I had been a threat?"

"Well, I would have just pummeled you and thrown you back over there, of course."

Her dumbfounded expression drew genuine laughter from the swordsman and she could do nothing but flounder for a response. She found none, but didn't have to linger in silence for long before Luffy had turned her questioning back on her.

"Hey, are you a pirate? What were you doing on that little piece of wood? Did you get caught in the storm?" The queries were delivered in rapid-fire succession, and Luffy looked as though he was about to ask more when she held a gloved hand up in front of his face.

"Slow down." She took only a moment to consider her answers before responding. "I am not a pirate. I did get caught in the storm, and that little piece of wood is all that is left of my boat."

It was then that Zoro decided he should enter the conversation. After taking in the woman's appearance, her denial of being a pirate had gotten his hackles up. If she wasn't a pirate, he could only think of two possibilities for someone carrying a sword and toting two pistols at their hips: a bounty hunter or a Marine. Neither of those was beneficial to him and his captain.

"All right, if you're not a pirate, what are you?" he rumbled, his thumb toying with the hilt of the white sword at his waist. Moire took note of the subtle threat. "Are you a bounty hunter, or a Marine?"

Moire subconsciously adjusted the thigh-length brown leather coat she wore, making certain it wasn't caught on the hilt of the sword above her left shoulder or the grips of her pistols. If she couldn't go for either of those in the event of a fight, there were plenty of other sharp objects littered about her person.

"Neither," she shot back, injecting a bit of venom into her voice. She was no longer an agent of the World Government, and had never been so willingly.

The tension was almost immediately relieved when Luffy cut back into the conversation.

"So, can you fight? Oh, that's so cool!" He was suddenly very close to Moire. In his hand were the two thin braids of dark auburn hair that hung from her right temple and he was studying the small, round gold charms attached to the ends. Little glass beads were scattered through the braids, as well, but it was the charms and their symbols that had his attention. One was engraved with the kanji for control, and the other for spirit. They were worn and scratched, as if they had been worn for a very long time.

Moire snatched the ends of the braids out of Luffy's hand, glowering. "Yes, I can fight. You'll find out how well if you touch those again," she snarled.

The captain put his hands up, smiling sheepishly, "Sorry, sorry."

"Where were you going when you got caught up in the storm?" Zoro interjected. Apparently it was up to him to ask the important questions.

Moire cast about quickly for a suitable answer, scanning the locations she remembered nearby. Zoro didn't miss the hesitation. "I was going to visit family in the Organ Islands, near Orange Town."

"Were you alone?"

_Which answer would make me appear less threatening? The obvious would be no, but then I would be the only survivor of an apparent shipwreck. Then I should be more concerned about my shipmates, presumably, and my lack thereof would seem suspicious. But if I'm traveling alone, then that seems strange in itself. Shit, I'm taking too long to answer. I should have died a dozen times over in the past if I was this poor of a liar._

"Yes, I was alone," she finally decided.

One corner of Zoro's mouth turned down. He wasn't satisfied at all with what the girl was telling him. He could almost _see _the thoughts flying behind her storm-cloud eyes. She wasn't fidgeting or avoiding his gaze, as most liars did, but she was hesitating a breath too long when she answered. Her attire and appearance sent up red flags almost immediately. She wasn't particularly tall - he'd judge her just below his shoulder when they were standing - but he could tell her shoulders were a little wider than an average woman her size, hinting at muscle beneath. The open jacket and skin tight black tank top she wore further confirmed that assessment. She did not seem uneasy in the least with the two pistols slung low on her hips. Her dark blue, fitted pants tucked into a pair of calf-length brown leather boots. She was dressed like a career fighter: nothing frivolous, nothing to get in the way, except for the satiny, dark crimson scarf looped around her neck. Yet she claimed to not be a pirate, bounty hunter, or Marine. Mercenary or thief were also possibilities, but those didn't quite seem to fit, either.

Luffy, of course, was completely oblivious to the rising tension between the two. "Well, you seem really cool, Mora," he exclaimed, butchering her name. "Want to join my pirate crew?"

"It's Moire," she retorted, "and no."

Luffy's face fell. "Aw, why not? We're going to the Grand Line to find One Piece! I'm going to be the King of the Pirates, and he's going to be the world's greatest swordsman," he declared, pointing over his shoulder at Zoro.

"I have my own goals. Sorry." Her tone clearly stated that she was anything but sorry.

"Besides, I don't think a two-man crew is getting very far in the East Blue, much less the Grand Line."

"Oh, I'll find more crewmates. We could think of a job for you, but we still need a navigator, a cook, a musician - "

Zoro groaned, his forehead falling into his palm. "Luffy, why are you so obsessed with having a musician?"

"I'm not joining your crew. You're obviously an idiot if you go around inviting people whom you know nothing about." _This kid is bloody crazy!_

"I'll convince you sooner or later. We've got a while before we get to land, anyway!"

Staring back into Luffy's grinning face, Moire wished he'd just put her back on her little drifting piece of wreckage and leave her alone. She still had to find her brother and get revenge for their lost home and family.

Moire had to resign herself to the fact that she was forcibly saddled with Luffy and Zoro for the time being. Her acknowledgement of it hardly meant that she was particularly thrilled about the situation. For much of the remainder of the day, she ignored the two almost completely before Luffy began annoying her into sharing a bit of her food with him. Once he realized she had it, however, she had to keep a dagger handy to fend off the captain's stretchy, greedy hands.

For his part, Zoro kept a close eye on Moire. She hadn't reacted to either of their identities - only to the fact that they were pirates - so he felt safe in assuming that she was no bounty hunter. Still, the girl was hiding something, and if he had to guess, that something was very dark. She was talented in subterfuge, he would give her that, but every now and then a sadness, tinged with rage, usually kept buried deep, would begin to surface in her eyes as she fixed her eyes on the horizon. After a moment, she would seem to catch herself and he could almost see her shake her head to rid herself of whatever place she had gone to.

By that evening, the winds had utterly calmed. The little sailboat was going nowhere on wind power alone, and its three inhabitants began to take turns rowing with the single set of oars. It was slow going as they paced themselves to make the most of what energy they had - well, except Luffy, who threw himself to the task with his usual enthusiasm and vigor. Moire had retreated into herself further, having exhausted what curiosity and geniality she could muster, and weathered the arrangements in near silence.

When even the moon had set, it was decided that the three would take turns keeping watch as the others slept. Without argument, Moire accepted the first shift, her stormy eyes already drinking in the star-littered night around them.

Once the others had gone to sleep, there was not a sound to be heard except their snoring and the gentle lapping of water against the hull. Every now and then, there came a noise from far off that Moire imagined might be a whale breaching the surface, but all else was still. She found herself staring, unblinking, at the stars, searching for patterns that were not there. This was the wrong season, and she was on the wrong side of the world.

_"What is that one called, Daddy? The one that looks like a snake?" her brother asked, indicating a long formation of stars. He knew the answer, but nevertheless wanted to hear again about the fearsome beast that gave the constellation its name._

_Her father chuckled, his laugh rumbling deep in his thick chest. "That is Hydra," he replied, humoring his son. "A Hydra is a special kind of sea king that lurks in the furthest reaches of the Grand Line. It's a good thing for us that it doesn't like to be bothered with people." He paused._

_Playing along, Moire asked the question he was waiting for: "And why is that?"_

_"Well," he replied, putting on his storytelling voice, "they say the Hydra is a giant, even among Sea Kings. Its teeth are as long as the beam of a warship! And if any mortal ever feels its dreaded breath, he or she will surely die of the poison. It would take someone fearsomely strong to ever wound the creature, with its armor-like scales, and then they must avoid the blood. The blood of a Hydra can eat through another's flesh like acid. There are even stories that say once the Hydra is dead, it will come back to life again, even stronger than before."_

_A voice calling from the forested path that led to the shore interrupted any further tales of the Hydra. "Aeneas! Murdoch! Moire! It's time for bed - Eonan is already asleep!"_

_It wasn't long before the woman who had called them was in sight. Her dark hair was silvered in the moonlight, and her pale blue eyes washed out to the shade of liquid mercury. She stopped when she spotted the three wayward members of her family seated on a blanket in the sand, placing her fists on her hips and sighing in a long-suffering fashion._

_"What is it this time? Sailors or stars?"_

_Aeneas smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head and mussing short, pale blond hair. "A bit of both, I suppose."_

_"I know how much you three enjoy the sea and the sky - strange among our people, you are - but it is high time to get these bairns tucked into bed!" The last was directed solely at her husband with a pointed look. Her gaze was not angry or upset; perhaps it was closer to resignation with a trace of frustration._

_Rising to his full, rather impressive, height, Aeneas gestured to his children to do the same. "I am sorry Coira." His eyes were full of genuine apology as he spoke. "You know how we can get carried away sometimes."_

_She smiled then, her pixie-like features lighting up with the warmth of it. "That I do. And 'tis fortunate you have me about to keep you in line!"_

_Moire lifted the blanket from the sand and folded it, giggling in delight when her father swept his wife literally off her feet. Coira gave a little indignant squeak and swatted ineffectually at her husband's shoulder. The size difference between the two made her seem no bigger than a child in his arms. As Aeneas made his way up the path with his now-laughing prize, Moire and Murdoch hurried after, their own amusement ringing in the night._

_Looking ahead at her parents and to her side at her brother, his dark hair falling into his cobalt eyes and grin splitting his face, Moire couldn't imagine a better life._

_The next day, the ship arrived._

Moire was flung forcibly from her nostalgia by a particularly loud snore from Luffy. She had been so deep within the memory that for a moment she hardly recognized where she was. When she came to, she realized she was already palming a knife: one of the several tucked about her person that could be either thrown or wielded in-hand. The smooth metal in the dark caught her eye and she stared hard at it, lip curling in something akin to disgust.

_How many lives have I ended just like that? _she wondered. _How many were innocent? How many good people who simply got in the way of men with questionable morals?_

Her past sins had never outwardly affected Moire. She had been molded into a killer; death was the result expected when she was sent out. She was an arrow strung to a bow, striking wherever she was aimed without question. There had been no room for hesitation, no place for guilt, only survival. In that moment, however, she fully realized the weight pressing down on her: the weight of dozens of souls, all of whom left behind families, dreams, and things undone. She had survived on the thought of revenge against the organization that had forced her into doing its bidding, but could that possibly atone for the crimes she had committed?

"Blood can never erase blood," her father had told her when she asked why her people never fought back when they were oppressed. Instead, they would move on to a new home in a quest for peace.

With newfound doubts roiling in her mind, Moire never found herself becoming tired. Instead, she kept watch over the otherwise sleeping boat for the remainder of the night.


	5. Chapter 4: A Matter of Humanity

_I hope you all are enjoying this possibly misguided adventure back into fanfiction (yes, I know you're out there, you brave souls). I am hardly the type to hold chapters ransom for reviews (the reason I am writing this is not for recognition), but I would appreciate it if you dropped me a line every now and again to let me know how I'm doing._

_Be ready for longer chapters! As I've said before, I am following the original storyline, however, things may or may not change dramatically with the addition of a new character. Her own troubles are far from over with her escape, and those will, of course, affect their journey. I hope I have injected enough new content and shuffled things around and recombined anime and manga enough to keep this interesting._

_Warnings: Spoilers for Chapter 8 - 10 of the manga and episodes 4 &amp; 5 of the anime. Really, though, if you're here, you shouldn't need spoiler warnings for this early material. On another note, keep in mind, I will be primarily sticking to the manga storyline and anime references are never going to come from that ridiculous 4Kids dub!_

The following morning dawned bright and fresh, the sun painting the sky a myriad of shades from deepest orange to the most brilliant white-gold. Towering white clouds dotted the horizon, and, rather than threatening a storm, were driven gaily across the heavens by an easy breeze. Moire sighed in relief at the reappearance of the wind and thoroughly enjoyed the sound of the canvas sail rippling. They were being blown almost due west and should, with any luck, soon arrive on land.

Before too long, Moire's shipmates began to stir. Luffy let out an enormous yawn, throwing his head back and stretching his arms well beyond the sides of the boat. The green-haired swordsman was only a little more dignified. When they both realized it was morning, they looked around in alarm. Zoro thought Moire had fallen asleep on watch and was thoroughly ready to thrash her, while Luffy was nearing a panic thinking she had fallen overboard or otherwise disappeared. After all, he hadn't convinced her to join their crew just yet. Both were surprised to find her still very much awake and present, sitting calmly at the prow and gazing back at them with shuttered eyes and a passive expression.

"Did you really stay awake all night?" Luffy asked, the first to find his voice. Moire simply nodded in response. The captain sighed inwardly. He had found the woman to be uncommunicative at best and downright threatening at worst. She rarely spoke unless it was to make a point, and there were few enough of those to be made in their current situation. With a similarly grumpy swordsman as his other shipmate, Luffy was becoming rather starved for conversation.

Zoro huffed. "At least I don't have to beat you senseless for falling asleep on watch and putting us all in danger."

Moire's low voice met his verbal jab with an invitation and a threat all at once: "I would like to see you try." It wasn't the most mature response, but quite appropriate. In her judgment, though she could tell that he was quite strong, the swordsman would be at a disadvantage in such close quarters.

Zoro glared in return, thumbing the hilt of one of his swords. She was absolutely infuriating with her silence and lofty attitude. He was just itching to bring her down a peg.

Completely oblivious to the tension between the other two, Luffy hung over the side of the boat, his arms dangling toward the water. He groaned. "I'm so hungry!"

Moire's expression became slightly irritated. "If you hadn't eaten all of my food, there would be some left for today." With that, she drew the sword at her back. Zoro tensed, preparing for a fight, but when she didn't make another move except to remove a whetstone from one of the pockets of her pack, he settled back once more. Within moments, she became absorbed in the task of honing the blade into perfect condition. She _had _just taken it from the outpost's armory; her personal weapons had all been under lock and key after their arrival. While Humber had trusted her to be armed on a ship - she really had no skill in sailing to speak of, beyond the very basics that had allowed her to steal the little catboat - he had thoroughly denied her the privilege of being armed on land.

The single, long katana wasn't really her preferred weapon to begin with, and this one was quite average in almost every way. It was military issued, so the balance being reasonable was necessary, but there was no _feel _to the blade. No emotion had gone into its making, and while it was serviceable, it was hardly the finely tuned piece of art she was used to wielding. Nevertheless, it was now hers, and it needed to be in the best condition possible before she found herself in battle.

Meanwhile, Luffy's whining had continued, accompanied by grumbles from his empty stomach. He hadn't moved from his position draped over the side, and Moire was certain he would wind up with a headache if he persisted in staring into the glimmering sea.

"When the hell are we going to reach land, anyway?" Zoro asked, directing the question at all and sundry.

_Within a day or so, _Moire responded mentally. Either way, the answering of the query was pointless; it would do nothing to fill their empty bellies or speed them on to their destination. It had been drilled into her mind for many years to never speak unless her words contained useful, pertinent information.

"Who knows? We're just sailing on the wind and the waves, going where they take us. We might not ever even reach the land. Ah, I guess we will someday," Luffy rambled.

Zoro looked thoroughly indignant, perhaps even a little angry. "Don't you think it's stupid that someone trying to be King of the Pirates doesn't have any navigational skills?"

"Not really. I've always just drifted around." Clearly, Luffy was thoroughly unimpressed with his first mate's ire. "What about you? Aren't you some famous bounty hunter who's sailed the seas?" Moire almost snorted. _Luffy: 1, Zoro: 0._

The latter didn't seem to catch the implied insult, latching on instead to the label applied to him. "I don't have a single recollection of calling myself a bounty hunter." He threw his head back, staring past the sail and into the sky. "I went to sea to search for a single man, but then I couldn't get back to my village. I had no choice but to start hunting pirates for a living."

"Oh, so you're lost?"

_That _got Zoro's attention. "Shut up!" he shouted. "You're the one who's lost!"

Moire couldn't take it any longer. She had to state what should have been obvious. "Without knowing how to navigate in the slightest, you can never expect to reach the Grand Line, much less conquer it."

The swordsman turned his aggravation on her. "Like you're one to talk! You haven't been much help so far!"

One corner of her mouth tilted up. It was a strange feeling, the urge to reveal that little smirk, after keeping her face expressionless in front of her superiors. "While I do not know with any precision where we will make landfall, we will reach the eastern coast of the Organ Islands within the next twenty-four hours." Her report was direct, almost staccato, like a soldier providing information to a superior officer.

Both Luffy and Zoro stared at her, their jaws dropping, before Zoro began sputtering. He shouted, "That would have been good to know before now!"

Moire just blinked in confusion. "Why? That information would have done nothing useful for you. It cannot be used to ascertain our exact position or to reach our destination more quickly, or even to ease our hunger. I saw no reason to mention it."

"You must have never heard of the light at the end of the tunnel." Zoro sat back and crossed his arms, newly assessing the odd young woman sitting at the prow. One moment, she was almost normal, albeit very closed off, and then the next, she seemed as though she had been extremely sheltered and simultaneously seen far too much. He couldn't pin her down, and it frustrated him.

Moire simply shook her head and returned to sharpening the sword in her hand. It had been a very long time since she had been taken from her home, and in those years she had not been viewed as a human being. She was a tool, a weapon, and treated as such. Thus, she forgot how to be human. Zoro's statement reminded her that sometimes others needed to be given hope. Though their situation was far from dire, maybe they _had _needed to know their plight would soon be over.

Not looking up from her task, Moire murmured, "I'm sorry."

Zoro was the only one who heard, and his head snapped back to her again. He didn't know how to respond, but was saved from having to do so by Luffy suddenly perking up. A shadow passed briefly over the trio as a large bird came between them and the sun.

"Hey look, a bird," Zoro pointed out lamely. Moire remained wholly uninterested, but Luffy broke out into a grin.

"I know! Let's eat it!"

"And how do you plan to eat it? We can't even catch it!" Once again, Zoro was seriously beginning to doubt his choice to follow Luffy to sea.

"I'll go get it, watch!" Without any warning or explanation, Luffy's arms stretched upward and his hands grasped either yard arm. "Gum-Gum…" He leaned back, imitating a slingshot, before flinging himself into the air towards the bird. "Rocket!"

That gave even Moire pause as she watched the erstwhile boat-bound captain soaring into the sky after his prey.

Zoro shaded his eyes against the glare of the sun to watch. "Makes sense, I guess…Huh?!"

The two remaining shipmates were completely taken aback when, at the apex of Luffy's flight, the boy had turned rapidly from hunter to future meal. The bird, much larger than originally thought, snapped his head in its beak without so much as turning a feather, as though it regularly had rubbery pirate captains hurtling into the sky at it.

"Help!" Luffy howled as the bird began flying west at a far greater rate than their boat's current pace.

Zoro leapt into action, and, reading his intentions, Moire furled the sail just in time to keep it from being damaged. She had to brace herself on the mast to keep from being flung to the bow at the sudden lurch of Zoro rowing absolutely as fast as he could in pursuit of the avian kidnapper. Her dark hair in its new ponytail whipped in the wind, the charms and beads in her braids tinkling frantically, and for a moment, she couldn't ever remember feeling so alive. All the while, the swordsman was shouting at the top of his lungs at his captain.

It wasn't long before Moire was brought out of the thrill of the chase by the thin sound of voices - certainly not hers and they did not belong to her captain, either - through the ruckus Zoro was raising. They were calling for help. She squinted into the wind and saw a small craft, barely a dinghy, dead ahead. A moment later, Zoro also took notice, directing his shouting at them, at least momentarily.

"I don't have time to stop! You're just going to have to get on yourselves!"

They whipped past the little boat and suddenly had three more passengers. Facing aft to keep the wind out of her eyes, Moire took a moment to study the frazzled trio slumped near the stern. Dripping water, they looked thoroughly miserable and utterly relieved that someone had actually come along in this deserted part of the sea. One was heavy-set with dark skin and a square jaw sporting a goatee. Another had bright orange hair styled in the shape of an anvil, thick lips and squinted eyes. The last wore an odd cap with tails on either side of his head, a skull-and-cross-bones on the front with a bright red clown nose and makeup around the eyes. His face was all sharp angles, and despite his bedraggled state, there was something cruel about his eyes. Moire immediately didn't feel particularly comfortable, and her hand strayed to the hilt of her sword.

Their panting and huffing abruptly ended when all three shouted at the top of their lungs at Zoro: "Were you trying to run us over?"

The swordsman, still facing away from them, just chuckled under his breath. "Your climbing skills aren't that bad," he replied to their complaining. He didn't see the three begin to draw steel.

"Hey, stop the boat!" Orange-Hair called.

"This is the pirate Buggy - " Square-Jaw's sentence was cut off abruptly when a booted foot connected soundly with his rather large face. Moire blocked a swipe from Beanie-Guy's shortsword with her own just before Orange-Hair was intercepted by Zoro. The little boat rocked, and the sound of blows being traded rang across the ocean. It was only a matter of seconds before all went quiet.

The three were solidly beaten, sporting various bruises, lumps, bumps, and bloody noses all around, and forcibly planted on the bench to row. Their demeanor had changed entirely and they seemed happy to help the two who were quite obviously much too strong for them to handle. Sweat beaded their brows every time Moire's hand twitched to the hilt of her sword or Zoro's eyes crossed theirs just so.

"We didn't know you were the pirate hunter, Zoro! We're so sorry!" Square-Jaw called.

"We don't know who you are, miss, but we never meant to cross you!" Beanie-Guy added.

Zoro just glared harder at them. "Thanks to you three idiots, I lost sight of my friend. So just keep rowing."

The sea slowly slipped past the boat, and Moire almost missed the powerful wind as they had torn across the ocean before. She had to admit, she hadn't felt so exhilarated, so human, in years. Her sharp eyes strayed from the horizon, to the trio rowing, to the swordsman. He was an odd one: on the surface, all sharp, hard contours and absolutely no filter, while underneath there was a warmth. She could see it in his concern for Luffy, and wondered for a moment what it felt like. It had been a long time since she and her brother had been separated, and even longer since they were taken. Her childhood memories often seemed like a distant dream, and any inkling of emotion or sensation would disappear like smoke when she tried to grasp it. Since she had met Luffy and Zoro two days before, she had almost remembered those things, but it was all still too far distant, a faint buzzing in her ears or movement in the corner of her eye that was gone when she turned to find it. So far away had she gone that she nearly missed Zoro asking the three who their captain, this Buggy, was.

"You've never heard of Buggy the Clown?" Beanie exclaimed. His face darkened and he looked even more nervous than before. "He's the ruthless captain of our pirate ship. And he's eaten one of the Devil Fruits. He is one truly terrifying man."

_A Devil Fruit, aye? You don't find too many of those in the East Blue. That must be why he's so "terrifying." The locals aren't used to dealing with his kind. _

"He'll kill us all for letting a girl steal our boat _and _our treasure _and _getting captured by Pirate-Hunter Zoro and his girlfriend!"

Moire blinked. _What? _When she glanced at Zoro, there was a tinge of red across his cheeks and up his ears and he refused to meet her eyes. Instead, he directed his attention to the apparent leader of the trio, the one wearing the beanie.

"She's not my girlfriend, you idiot!" he shouted and knocked aforementioned idiot in the head with the hilt of one of his swords. He fell back, his eyes glazed and a bit of spit trailing from his mouth.

Leaning over to get a better look at the poor pirate, Moire muttered, "I think you may have knocked him unconscious."

Zoro humphed, crossing his arms over his chest. He still refused to look at her, obviously embarrassed. "He deserved it."

Moire rolled her eyes. They were adults, weren't they? _Well, I might be as emotionally stunted as they come, and clearly Zoro has focused more on his training and pirate hunting than any sort of social life, so perhaps we're both in a similar situation when it comes to such matters. Hm? _She noticed that the boat had almost stopped moving.

"Hey you two, keep rowing," she growled.

"Yes ma'am!" they cried in unison and set to with renewed vigor. What followed was a period of only mildly awkward silence stretched over the course of what Moire judged to be several miles. She settled herself near the prow of the boat, eyes raking the horizon for any sign of land. The terrible trio insisted that they were heading toward the nearest island, but with her bearings so thrown off by the storm, she couldn't be certain.

"At what port will we make landfall?" she asked over her shoulder.

Square-Jaw nearly knocked out his carrot-topped crewmate to be the first to answer.

"Orange Town, Miss!" She merely hummed in response, not looking back.

_Good. Perhaps I wasn't so far off, after all. The town is a reasonably busy port for this part of the East Blue. I can barter passage south from there, with any luck._

"Isn't that where you said you were going to begin with?" Zoro commented from the rear.

"Yes, it is."

"You don't seem too happy to find out that we'll actually be landing there. Aren't you relieved that you'll still see your family soon?"

_Apparently this one doesn't drop suspicions so easily. _Aloud, Moire said, "I am, but pardon me if I don't jump for joy in a little dinghy with four strange men accompanying me."

The speck on the horizon that she had spotted a few minutes past was becoming steadily larger. It was at that moment that Zoro also saw it and took it for what it was: their destination. He hoped that stupid, big bird had its nest there and not on some other random rock.

When the five pulled into port, they docked beside a massive, ridiculous galleon. It was painted a lurid shade of purple, adorned with insane decorations in carnival colors. A pirate flag with a Jolly Roger that matched Beanie-Guy's hat flew atop its tallest mast. The docks, strangely enough, were completely silent. Where they should have been abuzz with activity, there was not a soul to be seen on the cobbled roads. The town rose up behind the docks: two- to three-storey white-washed homes, framed in dark wood, lined the streets, their red tile roofs glistening in the sun. But even further into town, Moire could detect no signs of life. Something wasn't right. Orange Town was supposed to be a thriving trade village, growing rapidly, not a seeming ghost town.

"Where is everyone?" It was Zoro who asked the question pressing on her mind before she could give it voice.

"Well, you see, sir," Square-Jaw replied almost sheepishly, "we've kind of taken over this town."

_That doesn't bode well for me finding passage out of here. Not unless I can take down this idiot pirate captain. Doesn't he know that if you stifle trade to a town that it will no longer be prosperous enough to bother plundering? Better to strike an accord with the townsfolk, protection for valuables._

It only took a moment for Moire to become accustomed to dry land beneath her feet, and Zoro was similarly quick in adapting. When he straightened from disembarking, he immediately requested to be taken to the trio's captain, Buggy the Clown, in hopes of finding Luffy. The three agreed, but before Zoro followed them into the streets, he turned to Moire.

"Go do what you came here to do. I know it's not to see family. Just know that if you cross me or Luffy, you'll know what it's like to fight me," he rumbled, giving her a dark stare.

She met his gaze levelly, a knife appearing in her hand. "I don't take well to threats," she replied, watching his shoulders tense. "Warnings, though, I will bear in mind." An unspoken agreement passed between them: you stay out of my way, and I will stay out of yours. She slung her jacket, removed in the heat of the afternoon, over her uninjured shoulder and set off in the opposite direction of the three, disappearing around a corner.

Zoro watched her go, his curiosity nagging in the back of his mind, before turning to his guides who had been utterly confused by the exchange. "What are you waiting for? Let's go."

When the four were well on their way, Moire slipped back around her corner and followed, keeping to the edges of the street, making use of the shadows of awnings and any cover she could find in the empty town. If she wanted out of the East Blue, she had to get passage to at least near the Grand Line. To do that, trade and transport had to be reestablished in Orange Town. Otherwise, she could be stranded on land for quite some time.

She trailed the four unnoticed to near the center of town, where they stopped in front of a two-storey tavern. The roof was different from the others; where the rest of the buildings had slanted roofs, this one had what appeared to be a massive "widow's walk" patio. A sign above the door proclaimed it The Drinker's Pub - _what an original name_, Moire thought - and the sounds of raucous amusement could be heard coming from within and above.

Suddenly, cannon fire echoed from the roof of the pub and the buildings against which Moire leaned began to fall like dominoes for blocks. She scrambled out of the way as rubble began to fall towards her, her quick reflexes the only thing saving her from being crushed as building upon building toppled. Whatever was shot from the cannon left a trail of destruction at least a mile long before exploding with a massive roar that left her ears ringing. For a moment, her vision of the present faded, and she was eleven again, on her home island, with smoke and death smearing the dawn. She froze, her chest constricting.

And just like that, the moment passed, and she was left gulping for air, her stomach heaving. She remembered the pain of her home being destroyed, torn away, lives ended like the people who'd lived them were nothing but meaningless toys in some grander game. With the memory came rage. It was no longer simply practical to end Buggy's reign of terror.

This was personal.


	6. Chapter 5: A Shift in Views

_Hope you don't mind some Scottish slang thrown in here and there. As you've probably figured out, Moire is Scottish-based and as she gets more and more comfortable, her accent and old patterns of speech from before she was taken will become more pronounced. Don't worry though. There won't be too much writing "in dialect" that makes things nearly impossible to read, but you'll probably see some._

_Sorry this took me so long. Life happened. The M rating is for safety; there is no citrus planned, but plenty of language, violence, gore, and general insanity._

_Spoilers, as always. I suppose I'll actually start mentioning specific chapters/episodes if I ever manage to catch up more with canon._

The scene that greeted Moire when she reached the roof of the Drinker's Pub was an odd one, indeed. Dozens of pirates crowded around a man who must have been Buggy the Clown; literally, the man was dressed and made up just like a circus clown from the carnival that visited her island when she was a child. Several more were stopped mid-charge by Zoro's still-sheathed swords. Behind him was a girl she'd never seen before, and even further back was Luffy in a little square box of a cage. All of the pirates seemed to be gaping, dumbfounded, at Zoro, and only one set of eyes strayed her way: Luffy's.

"Mori!" he shouted, grinning with delight. And just like that, all eyes were turned on her.

She didn't notice all the attention right away through her annoyance. "It's _Moire_!"

"Whatever your name is, I thought you were leaving. I think I warned you about what would happen if you crossed us," Zoro cut in, his tone dangerous. He had thrown off the handful of pirates who had apparently been charging at the redhead behind him and was facing her with one sword leaned casually over his shoulder. The expression on his face perfectly matched the tone of his voice.

Moire raised a brow at the swordsman, a nasty retort on her tongue for a moment before she thought better of it. Instead, she said, "I don't plan to cross you. I have a bone to pick with him." She pointed at the clown captain, who scoffed in response.

"What could a drifter like you possibly want with me?"

Her attention fully on Buggy, Moire answered with a sneer, her rage returning. "_You _are despicable. Holding this town hostage and destroying the lives of those who inhabit it is disgusting. Only the lowest of the low would praise you for what you've done."

The clown pirate was taken aback; people didn't talk to him that way. If they did, they didn't survive for very long. Once he returned to himself, he glared, pulling red-painted lips back over gritted teeth in a snarl. "You'll pay for insulting me, drifter."

The standoff was interrupted when Luffy shouted, "Zoro! Get me out of here!" An instant hush fell over the previously rumbling pirate crew, a few whispering and wondering if this was _really _Zoro the Pirate Hunter. Buggy seemed to notice, as well, and he stood from his "throne."

"So, you're Pirate Hunter Zoro, huh? You must have come to take me in for my bounty."

Zoro's reply was completely indifferent, as if he didn't notice the sudden charge to the atmosphere. "I gave up pirate hunting; I have no interest in you or your bounty." Moire tensed, one hand straying toward the hilt of the sword rising above her shoulder.

"Well, I _am _interested in you. Killing you will only add to my infamous reputation." The clown had drawn several knives, four clasped between the fingers of his left hand and one spinning around his right. "As for you, drifter, I think I'll have my crew take care of you. Men!"

Moire missed the clash between Zoro and Buggy as several of the clowns charged her. Before they could react, she had drawn her blade, intercepting a knife attack and deflecting another all in one stroke. A long knife, drawn from a thin, smooth sheath at her thigh, appeared in her left hand as she began her dance of death. She was unaware of the dark eyes of Luffy following her as she fought, flowing away from and between blows from the clumsy pirate crew. Blood sprayed her face as she drew her knife across one man's throat just as she stabbed backwards with her sword to catch another in the gullet as he tried to come at her from behind.

With a half dozen of Buggy's crew down in the span of a minute or two, the rest that had attacked backed away warily as they tried to regroup and come up with a plan to deal with the surprisingly skilled opponent they faced. Some were trembling as they stared at her with wide eyes, while others tried to get the former to pull themselves together.

"No way! That was too easy!" Luffy shouted. Moire turned her head to give a _look _to the captain-in-a-cage and realized that he wasn't talking about her battle. The boy was fixated on something to her right, and she was brought up short by what she saw when she followed his gaze.

Zoro stood, his back to Buggy, who lay on the ground in pieces. As he sheathed his three swords, Moire frowned, her eyes taking in the entire rooftop scene once more. The remaining crew that had not attacked her looked smug, and no blood flowed from Buggy's wounds. Something was very, very wrong.

Meanwhile, the swordsman approached Luffy's cage, stooping to inspect the lock. Buggy's crew, seeming to have forgotten about the very real threat that Moire posed to their health, were all laughing uproariously.

"Very funny. Now hand over the keys before I get pissed off," Zoro snapped.

"Those guys are kind of creepy," Luffy mused, staring at the lot of them as if they were crazy.

Moire _felt _more than saw the motion out of the corner of her eye, but before she could call out a warning, Buggy's disembodied, floating hand had driven a dagger through Zoro's side. The swordsman hit his knees as the blood began to flow, staining his bright green haramaki a muddy red.

_What? _Moire whirled to face what had been a pile of body parts just as Buggy began to reassemble himself.

"The Chop-Chop Fruit," Buggy answered the chorus of shocked and angry questions flying about. "You can cut me up all you want, but you won't kill me! I'm a Chop-Chop man!"

_He really is another Devil Fruit user in the East Blue. Huh, things just seem to get more and more interesting around here, _Moire mused, keeping one eye on her former attackers and the other on the crazed captain in front of her. _I can't do much against him, unless…_ Her left hand, still holding the knife, brushed the butt of one of the pistols at her sides.

"Roronoa Zoro, you never had a chance! Looks like I missed your vital organs, but that's a serious wound you have!" The tall, red-nosed captain loomed over his prey, one dagger still spinning lazily in his fingers. A chant of "kill him" was rising among his crew.

Moire didn't have any more time to finish the thought of drawing her guns as Buggy lunged toward Zoro, still on his knees and clutching his wounded side. She met the captain's killing attack head on, her sword and knife crossed to absorb the force. In the process, she was nearly pushed back over the very man she was trying to save. She didn't remember thinking of rescue until the time came to act; a very _human_ instinct, long buried, had risen at that moment and ruled her body and mind.

"You again?" Buggy growled. "You would insult me and then stand in my way? I'll just have to take you out first!"

He was interrupted once again by a furiously screaming Luffy: "Stabbing someone in the back is a cowardly move, Big Nose!"

That was absolutely the wrong thing to say to Buggy, but it got his attention off Moire as the redheaded girl shouted at Luffy for being an idiot. "You dare to call me Big Nose?" His right hand flew out, dagger brandished, and detached from his arm, heading straight for Luffy's face. Like a bullet, it shot through the bars and hit its target head on.

"Luffy!"

When the boy looked up, it was to the shock of Buggy and his crew, and the relief of Zoro and Moire, who had begun to grow a bit of a liking for him. "I swear," he gritted around the blade in his teeth, "I'm going to kick your ass!" And he bit the dagger itself in two.

Buggy burst into laughter. "'Kick my ass,' he says! Don't make me laugh! I'm going to kill all four of you!"

"It's hopeless. We're going to die," the redhead murmured, as Luffy laughed and stated with certainty: "I'm not gonna die!"

Moire slowly sheathed the knife in her left hand, and, watching to see if she gained any reaction from Buggy's crew or the captain himself, slowly laid her fingers over the butt of her gun. Before she could make a move, Luffy was yelling again, drawing all attention back to them. _Damn that boy and his timing, _she thought.

"Zoro! Moor! Run away!"

The dumbfounded explosion from Zoro drowned out Moire's annoyance at Luffy screwing up her name yet again. "What?! I'm not going anywhere! They'll kill you the instant we're gone!" Luffy simply stared back, resolve and something Moire could only call confidence on his face.

"I got ya." Some message must have passed between the two because Zoro leapt into action just as a maniacally cackling Buggy leapt at him. He blocked the flying blows with one blade before slicing at Buggy's waist. While the clown flew apart, Zoro dove for the cannon.

The utterly mad plan snapped into place in Moire's mind and she moved just in time to knock aside a pistol being fired from one of the crew toward Zoro. The man was nearly cut in half for his troubles. She could hear Zoro behind her groaning as he lifted the massive cannon, turning it 'round on its hinges, as she stayed busy keeping Buggy's crew at a safe distance. With a great clang and shudder, the cannon fell into place, at which point Buggy and the pirates that were staring down the barrel lost it.

"He pointed the cannon at us!" one pirate screamed.

"And it's loaded with one of my Buggy balls!" the captain added.

The pirates around Moire ran with their leader just as Zoro demanded the redhead light the fuse. "Light this thing! Hurry up!"

"Look out!" Buggy caterwauled as the cannon fired, its payload tearing through the sky and off the roof. Smoke formed a screen in front of the four misfits.

"Now's our chance," Zoro panted. "Who are you, anyway?" The question was directed at the redheaded girl.

"I'm…a thief."

"Actually," Luffy piped in, "she's our new navigator! And Mori, your fight was awesome! You have to join us, too!"

"What the hell are you talking about? Are you insane?" the redhead exploded just as Moire shouted, "My name is _Moire _you idiot!"

"And shouldn't you be trying to get out of that cage?" the self-proclaimed thief added.

Luffy snickered, "Oh yeah, maybe you're right."

"You just stay in there for now," Zoro ordered, grabbing the cage just as Buggy burst through the smoke looking singed.

"You're not going anywhere!"

"Zoro, you can't do this, your guts'll fall out!" Luffy warned. The swordsman ignored him, hoisting the cage over his shoulders, blood running down his side.

"Don't lecture me. I do things my way," Zoro gritted, trickles of red running from his lips. Not bothering to sheath the blade in her hand, Moire darted after the swordsman over the rooftops. She vaguely noted the redheaded thief following.

Several buildings down, the foursome came to a halt. Luffy was tugging on the bars of his cage and complaining as Zoro slumped beside him. Moire looked between the two and couldn't help but admire the bond that had so obviously formed there. A kernel of respect began to grow for the annoying green-haired man as she fully realized that he had been prepared to die to save his friend. Another existed for the would-be king simply for inspiring such loyalty. In the corner of her mind, she noted the sounds of shouts as the pirates scrambled about searching for their prey. They hadn't thought to search the rooftops yet, but the clamor was getting closer.

"I think we should keep moving," Moire said. She looked around for the redhead as she did so, but the girl was gone. "We need to get further away."

Zoro shot an annoyed glare her way, sweat dripping down his face. "Do _you _want to carry this thing?" he asked, gesturing at the cage containing Luffy.

Irritation twisted Moire's lip a bit as she replied, her brogue thickening with ire, "That doesn't seem to be an option. Now drop the attitude and let's get out of here or we're all in trouble. That crew isn't much to speak of, but Buggy will be difficult to deal with, even with my guns. We need to regroup."

"I don't recall there ever being a 'we,'" Zoro muttered, but he lifted the cage anyway.

It was slow going as the trio made their way off the roof and into the streets. A trail of red droplets followed them down the white flagstones for several blocks before Zoro and Moire, bickering occasionally, finally agreed that they were far enough away to stop. Luffy's cage hit the ground with a resounding clank, followed shortly by the exhausted swordsman as he collapsed face down. Moire swept her gaze around them, finding nothing and no one but a small white dog staring at them from a few feet away.

"What's with this dog?" Zoro wondered from his prone position.

Luffy's interest piqued, he leaned hard against the bars, scooting the cage closer to the animal. "Doggy!" He started pulling faces at the canine but was rewarded only with a silent stare. "Hey, Zoro, I think this dog is frozen."

The swordsman had dragged himself to sit against the porch of the pet food shop in front of them. "I don't give a damn. He can sit there forever for all I care."

Moire regarded the animal with curiosity. She hadn't seen much of any animals for seven years, but as a child, she had grown up around them. The behavior - or lack thereof - of this particular dog was highly unusual. She idly noted the silent state of the pet food store, and wondered if the owner had skipped town when the pirates came. She was brought abruptly out of her musings by Luffy's howls of pain as the dog suddenly decided to do something. And by doing something, that really meant that he was trying to chew Luffy's face off.

"Luffy! Quit goofing around and get serious!" Zoro shouted, just before falling over sideways. The dog's attack had relented and he resumed his previous position.

"Damn dog," Luffy muttered.

Moire snickered in response. It felt good to smile. Her good mood was snapped away as light footsteps approached. She whirled, knife in hand, and had the stranger by the throat, blade poised, before she realized who it was.

"Hey! It's just me! Calm down, you crazy bitch!" the redhead coughed as Moire's grip on her throat loosened. The assassin's glare deepened, but she let the other girl go and lowered her knife.

Still rubbing her abused neck, the girl turned her attention to the men. "Is the middle of the street really the best hiding place you could find?"

"Hey! It's our navigator!"

"I never agreed to that! I just wanted to thank you for saving me." With that, she dropped a small, two-pronged key in front of Luffy and the dog.

"The key to the cage! Did you go steal it for me? Thanks Nami!" the boy cried jubilantly.

"I only did it so we'd be even. Now I don't owe you anything, so we're square, okay?"

"Yea, okay." Just as Luffy reached for the key, the dog leaned down and swallowed the thing. Before anyone could react with anything but shock, Luffy was trying to throttle the dog, yelling and cursing all the while. In the commotion, Moire missed the approach of another person.

"Hey, stop that!" an older man shouted. His shoulder-length, curly hair had turned a pale gray with age. His eyes were framed by round black glasses and deep wrinkles carved lines across his forehead and on either side of his mouth. "Stop picking on poor Chouchou! Leave him alone, you brats!"

Moire raised a brow at the man. He was dressed in a cobbled-together suit of armor, none of the various bits fitting quite right over his yellow plaid shirt, black shorts and sandals. An antique-looking spear with a wooden haft was slung across his back as if he was getting ready to throw himself into battle.

"And who might you be, old man?" Zoro questioned, looking upside down at the newcomer from his position on the ground.

"Old man?" he replied, sounding offended. "Why I'm the mayor of this town, Boodle! Now who are you, and why are you hurting Chouchou?" His demand was cut short as he noticed the blood staining Zoro's side and splattered across Moire's face. "That's a nasty wound you have. You must have had a run-in with Captain Buggy. We need to get you to a doctor."

Zoro protested - loudly - almost immediately. "I don't need a doctor. Just some sleep!"

Moire, feeling a twinge of sympathy for the annoying swordsman, added, "I have some first aid experience. I can patch him up with the right supplies."

Boodle regarded her a little more carefully than the others. It was as if he could _feel _something different about her, something a little more brutal and primal and a little less human. Unconsciously, she squirmed under his gaze; the scrutiny did not make her uncomfortable so much as what it implied when coupled with the fact that the other two did not receive such treatment. Almost sheepishly, she sheathed the sword and long knife still in her hands.

Ignoring Zoro's protests, Moire and Boodle hauled him off the ground and to a house the mayor said belonged to him. Moire had to keep herself from smacking the already injured man; his loud complaining was sure to garner some attention. Luckily, they made it to a second floor bedroom and deposited him on a bed. Boodle quickly left the room to gather up the supplies that Moire listed off, including a needle and heavy silk thread, much to Zoro's consternation. The assassin was more surprised that the mayor happened to have the proper materials; she wondered if he always stocked those things, or if he'd only begun after Buggy made his appearance.

"Hey, I don't need a nurse. Just leave me alone and let me sleep," Zoro grumbled from the bed.

Moire, who up until that point had stood facing the door, turned on him with a glare, eyes snapping. "What you need is to be stitched up before you bleed out all over the place. I'm no doctor, but I can at least try to keep you from getting a nasty infection on top of the injury. Now shut yer geddy and take the help I'm offering you."

Zoro blinked at the woman who loomed over him. Normally no taller than about his shoulder, she had a way of making her presence fill a room and seem more threatening. She had mostly kept to herself on the voyage, but he had seen her employ the same technique on Luffy every now and again. He wouldn't admit that he himself was intimidated, but it made him a mite uncomfortable to have a skilled, heavily armed fighter who he couldn't quite get a read on standing over him like that. What made it worse was that she was probably right, and he was being stupid. Fat chance he would ever say it aloud, though.

"Why do you _want _to help me in the first place? I thought you had family to take care of or whatever," he said instead.

The question seemed to catch her off guard and she paused, a thoughtful look flashing in her otherwise steady gaze. After a moment, she replied, "Mibbe I've come to respect you a bit. Or perhaps I don't want to see yer arse killed by a coward like Buggy. Mibbe a bit of both or sommat else entirely."

Boodle returned then, halting any response Zoro might have had, but he regarded the woman in a bit of a softer light than he had before. Not much softer, but a bit.

The mayor set a bowl of hot water, a pile of gauze, a roll of bandages, heavy needle, silk thread, disinfectant, and several shreds of what might once have been linen sheets for towels. "This should do it, if you can make him hold still. I'll go inform your captain that his swordsman is being taken care of."

Moire bowed her head in thanks and set to work sterilizing the needle and thread. She didn't once look at Zoro as she went about her task with quick, efficient hands. The swordsman watched her carefully, more intrigued than annoyed at the moment and entirely forgetting to argue about getting his wound treated. He could definitely tell that she hadn't been lying when she said she had first aid experience; she was much too businesslike not to have. He tensed when she once more turned her attention to him and ordered him to remove his shirt.

"I'm telling you, all I need is sleep!" he snapped.

Her gaze intensified, became a glare, and _something _prickled along his senses, something just out of reach that sent a shiver up his spine. The sensation was almost indescribable, more like the electricity in the air before a storm than anything else. "And _I _am telling _you _that you need to take your shirt off and be still."

He opened his mouth to argue, but another chill snapped through him and his jaw clicked shut. "Fine," he grumbled, doing as she ordered. Her expression relaxed just before she came at him with a rag soaked in disinfectant.

Outside, Boodle paused in the relation of Chouchou's tale as a pained howl reached their ears. Even the dog glanced at the second storey window.

"Think he's okay in there?" Luffy wondered, just before a feminine shout of "Stop bein' a fanny!" rang out, followed by a muffled crash.

"I think that answers that question," Nami muttered, blinking.

"I just hope they don't break anything with their bickering and fighting." With that, Boodle launched back into his tale of Chouchou, his departed owner, and the pet shop.

Back inside, Moire had Zoro pinned to the bed - much easier than she would have had he been in fighting condition - with one knee planted on his shoulder and the other trapping his chest. She was giving no thought to the awkward position it put her in, only thankful that her patient was finally still, but said patient was going red with embarrassment. He had a _very _up close and personal view of her rear and if he moved, he'd wind up planting his chin in a butt cheek. So, he stayed still, wincing only a bit as she jabbed him with the needle.

Once she was finished stitching, she allowed the swordsman to sit up, dabbing blood away from the newly stitched wound with a bit of gauze and disinfectant. One look at his reddened face brought her up short, however, and he flinched back as she reached a hand out to touch his forehead.

"I'm only tryin' to see if you have a fever, ya goon. Yer all flushed."

That only made him blush harder. This situation was getting to the point of no return. "I'm fine," he gritted out through clenched teeth.

"Sure ye are, with a great big hole in your side." She rolled her eyes at him and moved faster than he could react to check his temperature. "Don't seem to have a fever. Let me bandage you up and then I'll leave ye alone." Without so much as another word or glance his way, she wrapped him up tight.

Zoro very quickly replaced his damaged shirt and haramaki, forcing the redness out of his face to the best of his ability as he did so. Everything this woman did unsettled him in some way; he was by turns suspicious of her, baffled by her, angry at her, or utterly embarrassed just being near her. _I need a damn nap, _he thought as he collapsed back onto the bed. He was already drifting when she rose to leave the room.

"You're welcome," she prodded as she walked out of the door and into the hallway. He didn't respond, but she thought she saw him tense just a bit out of the corner of her eye. He was becoming quite entertaining to annoy, she thought while descending the stairs.

She was only halfway down when she heard a massive something approaching the pet shop with heavy steps. Whatever it was could only be trouble sent by the clown captain and she quickened her pace without really considering what she was doing.

_Now what? _she wondered.

_Scots' slang in this chapter:_

"_yer geddy" - your mouth_

"_mibbe" - maybe_

"_fanny" - in this case, wimp/baby, but can also mean a stupid person or vagina_


	7. Chapter 6: A Different Kind of Treasure

_Warnings for spoilers, language, violence, and a lot more dialect. The latter is coming so easily with Moire's character that I almost can't write her without it. The next two chapters will bring the Buggy arc to a close. And you get to see a glimpse of what Moire can do._

_For some stupid reason, this chapter was a bear._

As Moire moved cautiously down the stairs, an ear-splitting roar pounded her senses and rattled the windows. _So, it's not only big, but guaranteed to have sharp teeth. Bleeding fantastic. _Outside, alarmed shouts quickly followed the roar and two blurred and screaming figures dashed past the nearest window. Rolling her eyes, she cracked the front door so as not to draw any unwanted attention, peeking the short distance up the street.

A great brute of a lion with red eyes and an oddly pale coat loomed over Luffy and Chouchou. Perched on its massive shoulders was a man covered in white fur. Bear ears were shaped into the hair on his head and he looked altogether as strange as the lion he rode in on. He seemed to be enraged at something Luffy said. The latter was staring up at the threat with not a care in the world despite being utterly helpless while still trapped in the cage.

_There's nothin' fer it, is there? _With a sigh, Moire opened the door fully and drew both pistols from her hips as she walked toward the scene. At first, she went unnoticed and she paused to listen to the man's bragging. Apparently he had some "skill" in taming beasts or some other nonsense. Having dismounted the lion with a flourish, he approached Chouchou on bear-paw shoes (complete with black claw-like appendages) and bent toward the dog, commanding him to shake. She snorted in amusement when Chouchou gave the so-called beast tamer the same treatment he had given Luffy; the man flailed desperately as the little dog latched onto his wrist and refused to let go.

The sound drew the lion's attention and once the beast tamer had hurled the dog away, he, too, turned to face her. He smirked; the woman was on the smaller side and couldn't pose much of a threat. He figured the way that she stood so casually, guns pointed downward, was a sign of her reluctance to use them. "Oh, it's the little girl Buggy was raving about," he sneered. "I, Mohji the Beast Tamer, will not kill you, or this petty thief here. But you will tell me where Roronoa Zoro is!"

"Like hell!" Luffy shouted.

"I dinnae think so," Moire affirmed, her eyes narrowing.

There was no warning, no breathless pause. The order for the lion, Richie, to attack came immediately. The giant animal pounced on Luffy's cage, crushing the steel and concrete, and flung the briefly rejoicing pirate down the block, demolishing a house. In the same moment, Moire raised her pistols and fired both into the lion's neck and shoulder. With an unexpected speed, Richie whipped around and charged her way, seemingly unaffected by bullets. She threw her pistols down, reaching to draw her sword, but was unable to get out of the way. A meaty paw caught her in the chest and sent her rocketing through the window of a nearby shop front. She crashed into a wall, nearly destroying it, and slumped to the ground as debris from her passing fell around her.

She could still see the street outside, could see Richie approaching Chouchou and the pet food store behind him, but she couldn't seem to convince her body to move. The wind had been knocked clean out of her, and her lungs just wouldn't expand. In the short time it took for her to recover, she was forced to watch as the valiant little dog was flung aside and the store that was so clearly important to him burned. With a snarl, she dragged herself from the mess made by her impact, gingerly brushing glass and splinters from her battered coat and mussed hair.

Picking her way through the ruined tea shop, she stepped over the low ledge that had once been the bottom frame of a large glass window. The lion and his master had been halted in their leaving by the appearance of a grinning Luffy who seemed none the worse for wear.

She chalked his resilience up to his Devil Fruit abilities and found herself a mite jealous. She would definitely be feeling it later, while he was completely unscathed.

"I thought I killed you already!" Mohji yelled in surprise at seeing Luffy standing in his way.

"It'll take more than that to kill me! I'm a rubber man!"

"Ye missed me, too, ye piece of shite," Moire called. She met Luffy's gaze briefly, trying to make him understand. He looked as though he was ready to take on the lion and his master, but she wasn't about to let that happen. This one was hers.

Mohji sneered. "You brats. I'll deal with you later, once I've gotten rid of this pesky strawhat," he tossed dismissively at her, turning back to Luffy. "Richie!"

Moire reached within, found that well of energy that was always just at the edge of conscious thought and wrestled the raging torrent of it into submission. To do what was necessary, she needed to be ready.

Mid-lunge, Richie's head snapped to the side. The beast was brought up short as his feet tangled together with the sudden momentum shift and he nearly fell.

"_I'm _yer opponent, ye great feckwit." The air around her seemed to snap and spark, as if pulled impossibly tight and charged with electricity. Her dark, stormy eyes, fixed in a glare, took on a silvery sheen as she stared down the beast tamer and his feline servant. She had left her blades sheathed, deciding not to kill the lion if she didn't have to. If he was a threat _after _his master was dealt with, however, she wouldn't hesitate to put him down like a rabid dog.

Mohji snorted derisively as Richie regained his balance, looking down his nose at the petite young woman. "You think you can defeat me just because you took Richie off guard? Think again, little girl! Richie!"

Richie leapt forward, claws extended and teeth bared, but Moire was suddenly_ not there_. The confusion made by her apparent absence did not last long; she reappeared with a powerful kick to Richie's jaw, sending both lion and beast tamer hurtling down the cobblestone street. As Luffy watched on with a giant grin on his face, his reluctant companion blurred out of existence again before following up with a knockout blow to the lion. She landed lightly on her feet in front of Mohji. The beast tamer was staring up at her from his knees, blood trickling from a cut on his scalp and staining his white hair.

"Ye shouldna meddle wi' the dreams of others," Moire snarled.

The fear on Mohji's face was apparent and his entire body seemed to tremble. "What are you?"

She grinned in response. The expression wasn't a friendly one; it was a wicked thing that bared teeth and sent chills down her opponent's spine. "Unless ye've been to the Grand Line, ye wouldna have heard of my folk. But once upon a time, we were called the Devils of Selkraig before my family let go of the sword. My generation has taken it back up, and tossers like you _and _yer captain should take note."

"I - I'm sorry, I promise, I won't stand in your way!" Mohji stammered, backing away with both hands in the air.

"Oh, ye shouldna apologize to _me_, ye ken? It's that wee doggie over there whose treasures ye pissed on."

Moire nearly jumped out of her skin (and ruined the moment entirely) when Luffy appeared at her shoulder, voicing his approval. "Yea, you tosser! It's because of you that dog doesn't have anything left of his master!"

She had to resist the urge to roll her eyes, wondering vaguely if Luffy actually understood how ironic it was that he could pick up her insults but not her name. Rather than continue down that maddening road, she returned her focus to the so-called beast tamer who seemed ready to wet his pants.

"Now that ye understand the crime ye've committed, I think 'tis time for ye to pay the price." A few moments later, Mohji lay pummeled and unconscious on the flagstones. With one last glance at the scum, Moire spat in his face and moved away. Luffy passed her on his way to Chouchou's side. The little dog was staring sadly into the smoldering ruin of his master's pet food store.

"Oh, so you're alive, pirates," a familiar voice called. Moire turned her head to stare at the redhead. The thief flinched at the mildly threatening glance, a shiver creeping its way up the back of her neck at the odd silvery glint to those eyes. She seemed to steel herself, however, and kept up the tirade welling in her chest.

"I thought you two would be dead by now, and there would be two fewer pirates in the world! Maybe I should just kill you both right now before you can gather a crew and destroy everything else!" She charged haphazardly at a baffled Luffy before the mayor reappeared and intervened.

"You couldn't hurt me anyway," Luffy said, sticking his tongue out at the girl.

Moire shook her head as the redhead raged and watched as the young captain plopped a battered box of pet food in front of the mourning Chouchou. Her eyes softened and she smiled, just a little, at the sight.

"That's the only one I could save," Luffy explained to the dog. "The rest were all eaten or burned." He went on to tell the valiant little canine that he had fought well and done his best to protect his master's treasure.

Moved in a way that she could not recall ever having been, Moire joined the two in front of the burned out wreck, placing her hand between Chouchou's ears. "'Tis time to move on now, lad. Yer master wouldna want ye to waste away any longer. He wants ye to be happy; I'm sure of it."

With that, Chouchou took the pet food box between his teeth and began to walk up the street. Before he was too far away, he turned and gave a few happy barks their way. In his infinitely weird way of understanding, Luffy called in reply, "Thanks! Good luck to you, too!"

Moire sighed. The danger was over, and she released the tide of energy that had been pouring through her. She was exhausted just from that short fight, and slumped down to the ground beside Luffy. He turned to the young woman with a grin.

"I don't know what you did, but that was awesome! You _have _to join my crew!"

Moire huffed, laying all the way back on the street, her eyes closed. She cracked one open to look back at the boy, trying her best to glare and failing miserably. "Nae, boy, I think not."

He opened his mouth to whine and plead at her, but Nami interrupted. For once, someone had good timing. "I didn't mean to yell at you earlier. I'm sorry. I didn't understand."

"No need to apologize," Luffy replied without missing a beat. "I know someone you loved was killed by pirates." He stood, dusting off his shorts and wondering if he should help the prone girl beside him to her feet.

Said girl had no intention of moving for a while. She huffed a deep breath and waved Luffy away without ever opening her eyes, as if she knew exactly what he was thinking. There really was no immediate threat, despite the tirade that was beginning to spill over from the mayor.

"I can't take it anymore!" Boodle exploded. "I can't stand any more of their cruelty! With the way Chouchou and this girl fought back so bravely, what kind of mayor am I to sit back and watch my town be destroyed?"

Moire's eyes snapped open to stare upside down at the impassioned old man. Luffy, too, watched him, while Nami was trying in vain to get him to calm down.

"Sometimes, a man has to fight even if he's in danger of dying! Ain't that right kids?" Moire supposed that last was directed at she and Luffy, but couldn't muster up an appropriate response. Thankfully, Luffy answered for her.

"That's right! You got it, old man!"

"Don't encourage him!" Nami screamed.

Moire's heart twisted a little as Boodle went on to describe how the settlers had found their home forty years before, carving out the beautiful town she was surrounded by. She wondered vaguely if, somewhere along the line, they were distant relatives of hers, wandering the seas and searching for a peaceful life like her family had for generations. Her entire body tensed at the distant boom that sounded in tandem with Boodle's declaration of his fighting spirit.

Seconds later a Buggy Ball tore through the buildings adjacent to them. All four were thrown through the air, landing in various states of disarray amongst the rubble. Moire sat up and took a look around at the devastation. Her stomach turned as the realization hit she and Luffy at the same time.

"Dammit! They destroyed my house!" Boodle cursed.

"Hey! Zoro was sleeping in there!"

"Shite! Zoro!"

It took too long for the smoke to clear, long, drawn out seconds with their hearts in their throats. "Zoro, are you alive?" Luffy called into the cloud.

A stray breeze revealed the groaning swordsman surrounded by ruin, holding his head in one hand. "Damn, that was one hell of an alarm clock," was all he had to say.

Moire took a deep breath, not having fully realized that she was holding it. She was relieved beyond explanation that the swordsman hadn't been slaughtered in the explosion. Perhaps she could find herself rejoining the human race, after all.

"I've had enough!" the mayor shouted suddenly, thumping a hand to his armor with a clang. "I won't lose a second town to those goddamn pirates! They think they can plunder and pillage and destroy whatever they want, but I won't let them ruin forty years of hard work! Not again! I'm the mayor, and I won't take this sitting down!"

The older man launched up the street, back the way the other four had originally come.

Nami lunged, narrowly snagging the tail of his shirt and holding on with a death grip. Moire sat up to keep an eye on the slowly simmering state of affairs.

"It's time to fight, let go of me!"

"Mayor, please wait. Getting yourself killed won't accomplish anything! You're being reckless!"

His head whipped around to look Nami dead in the eye. Tears glistened behind his glasses, but his gaze was fierce, expression resolute. "I know I'm being reckless!"

So taken aback by Boodle's manner was Nami that she let go of the older man. As soon as he felt the tension release from his shirt, he began running again, shouting a warning to Buggy. "Prepare to meet your match!" he cried.

The mismatched group of four watched him go with varying expressions. "The mayor…he was crying," Nami murmured, almost to herself.

"It didn't look that way to me!" Luffy replied, eyeing the girl sideways.

Zoro chimed in, still seated on the ground. "Things are about to get interesting."

An enormous grin on his face, Luffy agreed, much to Nami's consternation. "This is no laughing matter!"

"Don't worry, I like that old man. I won't let him get killed."

Moire stood slowly, brushing herself off. "Nae, we couldna have that, now could we?"

While Luffy and Nami continued the conversation, Moire moved to retrieve her pistols from the mess. Fortunately, they weren't buried beneath a house or a store front. Holstering one, she used the tail of her shirt to wipe dust off the other, considering the strangeness of them. She supposed she should get rid of them; they were a direct link to her days working in the shadowy underbelly of the government.

The pair of pistols had been custom made for her hands and were examples of the latest in the government's rapidly advancing weapons technology. Fortunately, these had taken a year to hand make and were prototypes. Mass production would take years to finalize. Unlike the usual single shot pistols, with their gunpowder and steel or iron ball rounds, and external hammers, these pistols could fire up to six shots in rapid succession. They were odd looking, certainly, with cylindrical chambers to carry the extra ammunition, but had to be reloaded much less often. With a sigh, she holstered the second one; they had been too good to her for her to get rid of at that moment, but she would soon have to find the equipment to make her own bullets. She had only been able to take so many from the base.

Moire tuned back in to the others just in time to hear Nami scolding Zoro about his decision to join the fight against Buggy while still pretty well banged up. He simply shrugged her off, donning the black bandana that had been tied around his upper arm. Sidling up to her two temporary crewmates, Moire adjusted the sheath at her back; she had a feeling she'd be needing it.

"And what about you?" Nami snapped in her direction. "You just fought and looked like you were about ready to pass out!"

Zoro turned a curious glance in her direction, but Moire waved them both off. "I'll be right as rain by the time we get there," she replied nonchalantly.

With an almost manic grin, Luffy cracked his knuckles in preparation. "I can't wait."

"You three are insane," Nami groaned, but followed them anyway.

The return journey to Buggy's position seemed much shorter. Of course, Zoro wasn't bleeding out all over the flagstones and hauling Luffy around in a cage, either. It was also silent. There was no arguing about which direction to take, no whining from Luffy about his captivity. A quiet resolve had settled upon them. The young captain led the way unerringly, much to Moire's surprise, while she followed a few steps behind almost shoulder-to-shoulder with Zoro. Nami trailed them, looking increasingly anxious as they neared the Drinker's Pub.

As Luffy rounded the last corner, he suddenly darted out of sight and the other three were forced to run after him. They found the pirate crew lined up along the railing of the widow's walk, staring down on Luffy. The boy gripped the wrist of Buggy's disembodied hand, standing between it and a battered mayor.

"Told ya I'd be back to kick your ass," Luffy shot at the clown.

With a meaty thwack, Buggy recalled his left hand. With a glare and gritted teeth, he sneered, "I can't believe it! You three must enjoy pain. This time, you won't escape me!"

"Have fun fighting, guys. I'm just here for the map and treasure," Nami called airily as she made to disappear. The mayor's coughing brought her up short.

From his position on the ground, Boodle decided to try one more time to make certain that he was the only one fighting for his town. "You kids are outsiders; this isn't your fight. It's _my _battle, _my _town, and _I'll _be the one protecting it! So don't interfere!" He had risen, old spear in hand, but before he could make it two steps closer to the pub, Luffy punched him right in the back of the head.

"Whose side are you on? Why'd you do that to the mayor?" Nami screamed, her face going red.

"He was in the way," Luffy replied, as if that was the most acceptable answer in the world. Moire nodded agreement.

"He would have gotten himself killed," Zoro explained. "He'll be safer unconscious."

"You're insane!"

Ignoring Nami's protests, Luffy turned his attention to the enemy, shouting at the top of his lungs. "Hey, big nose!"

Moire grinned gleefully as he received the desired reaction. Buggy was in a fury. Her gut clenched a little, however, when a cannon loaded with one of his special cannonballs was turned their way. Perhaps a little _less_ infuriating would have worked just as nicely, she considered in retrospect. But as the cannon was fired, and Zoro was shouting at Luffy to get out of the way, Moire stood at his other shoulder. The boy was a bit dense, and his self-preservation instincts might have been lacking, but she knew he wouldn't deliberately lose. There was a plan going on in that crazy head of his, most likely involving his Devil Fruit abilities.

Seconds later, the strawhat captain inflated himself like a giant, human balloon, bouncing the cannon ball straight back toward the pirates waiting helplessly on top of the pub.

Holding his forehead in one hand, Zoro growled, "You could have at least told us what you were planning. Made me worry for nothing."

In the background, Nami was demanding to know just _what _Luffy was, while the boy in question simply stated, "That should make things fair. Let's get 'em!"


	8. Chapter 7: A New Crewmate, or Two

_So, now that I've returned to writing on this again after almost 8 months of ignoring it, here is the first new chapter of 2016. **NOTICE: **Earlier chapters have been re-edited and updated to correct minor mistakes. No major changes have been made to the plot, but shoot, you might want to go back and read them as a refresher since I've left this sitting around for so long._

_Slight change to the storyline ahead: Since Luffy did not fight Mohji, the Buggy pirates at large are still in the dark about his powers. _

_New disclaimer: Yep, still don't own One Piece. _

As Nami demanded to know how Luffy had returned the Buggy Ball, Moire eyed the smoke above them warily. She could almost _feel _them still there. The battle was far from over. Zoro seemed to realize the same, his shoulders still tense and one hand resting on the swords at his hip.

The redheaded thief's shrieking was abruptly cut off with the clearing of the smoke and the revelation that there had been multiple survivors. Buggy the Clown emerged from the wreckage, holding up two of his crew members before him. It was difficult to tell if the men were unconscious or dead, but they had both paid a hefty price to be the unwilling shields for their captain.

"How dare you?" Buggy growled. His disembodied hands relinquished the hold on his captives' necks and they fell to the ground limply, lying there like sacks of meal.

From the pile of broken building and unconscious pirates burst Mohji, flailing about in a panic. Once he spotted the four confronting his captain, he dashed forward.

"Captain Buggy! We have to be careful with them! That girl there, I don't know what she did, but she's so fast you can't see her. Just imagine what their captain can do!"

Buggy sneered at Moire, his gaze a touch more respectful than it had been before but still no less laden with hatred. "So, you aren't just a little girl after all? How interesting."

Though she had yet to see Luffy in full on combat, and despite the fact that she was still definitely _not _a part of his crew, she couldn't resist the jab that followed. "If I can strike fear into one of your strongest men, imagine what he can do," she smirked, pointing with her thumb at Luffy. "He is, after all, my captain, and I would be a fool to follow someone weaker than I."

_That _was a mistake. Luffy, as usual, missed the pretext entirely and took her words at face value. With a great cheer, he tackled Moire in a hug and began shouting, "Hooray! I knew you would join my crew! See, Zoro, I told you she would!"

Wincing as her various injuries, small and large, were irritated by the grip the young captain had on her, Moire tried in vain for several minutes to pry his rubbery arms off of her person. With a great sigh of defeat, she finally gave in. All the while, Luffy was loudly celebrating and dancing without relinquishing his hold, seeming to have forgotten the threat before them. That couldn't last much longer, however, as a rumble from the still-smoking pile of rubble behind Buggy interrupted his one-man party.

A man rose from the mess, and he must have been monstrously strong. One hand was tangled in the pale mane of an unconscious Richie, his white coat singed and smoldering.

"This may be the greatest insult we have ever received. How do you plan to respond, Captain?" the dark-haired man hissed.

"Cabaji!" Mohji shouted indignantly, not giving the captain enough time to answer. "What did you do to Richie?"

Cabaji smirked before tossing the great lion to the dirt in front of him. "I was afraid my clothes might get a little dirty, so I just used him as a shield."

Moire's stomach roiled. This sort of carelessness for the lives of those around him was the same attitude she had dealt with in the Organization, the same she had been forced to adopt for years to survive. She had seen it utterly destroy families, cities, armies, and change the face of the world, and certainly not for the better. It was the sort of thinking that she could not allow to continue, she realized. It wasn't human, not truly, to care nothing for fellow creatures, human or animal.

She didn't even bother ducking when Mohji was sent flying at them by Cabaji's kick, nor react when Luffy tossed him aside with another. Her right hand gripped the hilt of the sword above her shoulder and her entire body tensed, ready for a fight. Unbeknownst to her, the air around her had already begun to snap and spark as Cabaji launched himself toward them on his unicycle.

Before she could move to engage, a hand fell on her shoulder for a split second, breaking her focus just enough. She met Zoro's sideways glance for the briefest of moments before he himself intercepted Cabaji's strike at his captain.

"I'll cross swords with you," he growled.

"It's an honor, Roronoa Zoro," Cabaji replied from behind is blue-and-white checked scarf. "As a swordsman myself, I will relish the chance to slay you." His dark, beady eyes strayed downward to where blood was seeping through the bandages at Zoro's waist.

Moire was not alone in disapproving of Zoro's choice to fight. Luffy made an attempt to force him to sit this one out, but the swordsman vehemently refused. It was only a moment later that Cabaji distracted him with a blast of fire in the face, followed by a kick to the bleeding wound. As Zoro fell, Moire shook with the desire to take the scum in front of her down, but something told her that her ally would not appreciate the interference.

Holding herself back became even more difficult when Cabaji made another dirty attack that left Zoro doubled up on the ground. However, her newfound respect for the swordsman rose even more as he stood, took the hit to his already wounded side, and proceeded to make a fool out of the self-styled acrobat. Fortunately, Luffy had stepped in when Buggy tried to interfere.

_He wants to be the greatest. With that stubbornness, he may just have a chance, _Moire thought with a slight smirk. She barely even noticed when Nami abandoned them in favor of Buggy's treasure store.

"I can't believe the Buggy Pirates were defeated by such petty thieves," Cabaji groaned as he bled out over the flagstones.

Moire jumped forward just in time to keep Zoro from face-planting into said flagstones. "We aren't petty thieves; we're pirates," he said, just barely conscious and still smarting off. "Luffy, I'm goin' to sleep."

With a thousand watt grin, Luffy turned to the fight ahead of him, Buggy watching on with slightly less confidence than before. Moire ignored them, instead turning her full attention on the idiotic, stubborn swordsman on her shoulder.

"Not on me, yer not," she told him. "Yer heavier than ye look."

"You callin' me fat?"

"Quit spoutin' off and rest here." She lowered him to the ground. "It looks as though Luffy has this handled. I aim to see what that thief has gotten herself into."

With an anemic wiggle of his fingers, Zoro sent her off just before he passed out, fast asleep.

A few alleyways over, Moire spotted her target hauling a sack larger than she was, presumably full of treasure. What made her stop short, though, was the pair of swords the thief had strapped around her body, probably to at least look more threatening. They were twins, shortswords, with blades just the length of the woman's arm. The leather straps crisscrossing Nami's torso were dark with age and many layers of oil, exquisitely detailed with flowing designs that evoked wind and wave, ocean and sky. The hilts, shorter than a traditional katana's and meant to be held in one hand, were wrapped in well-worn black and gold and capped with symbols for spirit and control: the symbols of the Selkraig.

She fingered the little medallions at the ends of her braids. At first, when she was younger, the Organization had tried to take them from her, but the tiny charms always seemed to find their way back into her possession. Her captors had finally realized that she was somewhat calmer when she had them, perhaps similar to a childhood obsession with a favorite toy, and allowed her to keep them. It was only after her commission to the East Blue that she had begun actually wearing them again.

Moire hadn't intended to intercept the thief. Luffy cared for her wellbeing and she had had the compulsion to make certain the girl didn't get into trouble for his sake. Now she found herself stepping fully into the view of the younger woman and approaching her.

"I see ye didna find more than ye could handle," she said casually.

Nami glared at her. "I stole this treasure fair and square," she said through gritted teeth. "It's mine and you can't have it." Despite her threatening demeanor, there was a slight quaver in her voice. She had seen the results of what Moire could do.

"'Tis not the treasure that interests me, darlin', but what ye're wearin' there on yer person," she replied, gesturing with a dagger that Nami had not even seen withdrawn.

The thief began to relax a little when Moire said she wasn't there for the treasure, but the weapon that had appeared out of nowhere still had her on edge. She reached one hand up to touch one of the baldrics as she replied, "These old things? They were with the treasure. I thought they might keep people from messing with me if I wore them. Why are you so interested? Are they valuable?"

"Mayhaps they are valuable in the world's terms, but they are more valuable to me," Moire replied, still flipping the little dagger between her fingers. "I would ask that you part with them."

Nami's frown deepened. If the swords were valuable, she wanted to keep them, no questions asked. "And why should I?"

Moire was suddenly nose-to-nose with the thief. Nami realized that the other woman was a bit shorter. She hadn't noticed before at all, especially with the confidence and malice Moire could exude with ease. "Because I asked so nicely," the Selkraig purred in a thickened brogue. Nami's heart beat faster, but she wasn't about to back down.

"I stole these myself, and it was hard work. Besides, you have a sword of your own," she stammered.

In a flash, Moire was a step or two away, and Nami couldn't feel the baldrics crossing her shoulders any longer. She blinked, almost impressed despite herself when she realized the swords hung from her rival's hand.

"I do have a sword, Lady Thief, but it is not one made for my hands, nor does it belong to my family." She unconsciously touched the spirit charm on her shoulder. "These, however, do. I dinnae know how they ended up in such a pathetic pirate's hoard, but generations ago, these belonged to my forefathers."

_Oh, well, why didn't she say that in the first place? I might have been more willing to give them to her, _Nami thought, and she said as much. She knew deeply just how much family could mean to people.

Moire blinked owlishly, caught off guard. She wasn't used to getting things that didn't have to be taken through force or treachery. A straightforward approach had never entered her mind. Though she didn't show it outwardly, she felt a bit embarrassed.

Still holding the pair of baldrics in one hand, she removed the one holding her government issued katana and sheath to her back, slipping it from beneath her jacket. She thrust the weapon at the thief. "Here," she said shortly. "If you wish to be armed, take this. It will serve its purpose."

Nami slowly closed her hands around the sheath, blinking at the other woman's sudden change in demeanor.

"Now get out of here. If ye don't want Luffy to find ye, ye might want to hurry."

The thief still stood in place, utterly confused.

"And…I apologize. Now go on, get out of here," Moire managed in a rush, giving the girl a shove to emphasize her point. Then she was gone, leaving Nami even more bewildered.

"That girl…is weird," the thief muttered to herself before strapping on the unfamiliar sword and returning to the task of dragging away her treasure.

Moire, for her part, halted her retreat just around the corner. She felt a little regret for the way in which she had behaved. Perhaps she should have been more straightforward and not so aggressive, but she had acted as she had been taught and conditioned. She sighed.

_It will take time. I still don't feel right in my own skin. I still don't know what I'm supposed to do without someone else scripting my every move._

As she thought, her gaze strayed to the twin shortswords. These had always been her weapon of choice, and this particular set was smaller than what she would expect to have been made for a man. _Perhaps "fore_fathers_" wasn't quite correct. _She drew the sword with "spirit" etched into its hilt and paused. Small engraving on the blade gave what she assumed was the sword's name. _Arashi o Motarasu Mono, the Bringer of Storms. _She sheathed it and drew the second, the blade similarly shining as if untouched by time. _Heiwa o Motarasu Mono. The Bringer of Peace._

The worn black cloth and gold cord of the hilts felt good in her hands, and the blades virtually hummed with energy. These were hers in a way that no government sword, no matter how finely made, could ever have been. With another sigh, she removed her jacket, placing the baldrics over her shoulders, the hilt of Arashi above her right, Heiwa over her left. Once she had them settled, she slung her coat back over her shoulders, thanking the heavens that it was a bit big and allowed the extra room required for two swords. Feeling a little more sure of herself, even with her mind buzzing over the discovery of the seemingly ancient Selkraig relics, she set off to return to where she had left Luffy and Zoro.

She arrived just in time to find Luffy, face bloodied and furious with his straw hat in his hand, yelling at Buggy. "No one messes with this hat! It's my only treasure!"

"If it means that much to you," Buggy sneered, "then why don't you protect it properly?!" His disembodied hand, daggers between the fingers, soared through the air and impaled the straw hat, hurling it from Luffy's grasp. The hand returned to its owner, the hat still perched atop the blades.

_Buggy's done it now. If there's one thing I have learned about Luffy, it's that no one messes with the things he cares about. _Moire had moved to stand beside Zoro's prone form, hoping to keep the unconscious swordsman from further harm.

She was surprised to learn that Luffy knew, and seemed to care so much about, one of the Yonko, Red-Haired Shanks. _So that's why he is a pirate. I wonder if I'll ever learn that story._

She broke into unfamiliar laughter when Luffy kicked the lower half of Buggy's body in the groin as the clown attempted to destroy Nami – who just couldn't resist seeing how Luffy was doing – for stealing his treasure. The blow left both halves of his body writhing in pain. Even more hilarity ensued when Luffy discovered that Buggy's feet had to remain earthbound and he proceeded to tickle, pinch, and slam one of them. The fight seemed over when Luffy delivered a powerful knockout punch, only to have Buggy reassemble. Well, at least partially.

A stubby, miniature version of Buggy was on the receiving end of Luffy's Gum Gum Bazooka after Nami pinned down his various parts.

Things got a little awkward for Moire when Nami accepted Luffy's offer of joining them, but that didn't last long. With Zoro awake, the townsfolk stumbled upon the group, including the unconscious mayor and Luffy's mouth got them all in trouble.

What followed was a headlong rush through town to escape a mob of angry townsfolk, aided by a banged up but still spry little white dog. The four managed to reach the docks and Nami's little boat unscathed. Moire paused to retie one of her boots, kneeling behind Luffy, who had Zoro slung across one shoulder.

She heard a vaguely familiar voice threatening the others and calmly looked up just in time to spot one of the three "hitchhikers" from her and Zoro's frantic trip to land smack the swordsman on the back of the head to rouse him. She wrinkled her nose a little in distaste and stood, clearing her throat, just as Zoro raised his head.

The three screamed, absolutely terrified, and took off at a dead run across the sand, Luffy and Nami blinking in confusion at their dust trail.

Amongst the three of them – Zoro still wasn't much help – they were able to get both of their boats out into open water with little trouble. The entertainment for Moire wasn't over, however, even after a tearful thank you from the mayor on the dock. Luffy nearly went overboard when Nami discovered that he had left one bag of treasure on the beach.

"They're gonna need it to rebuild their town, right?" Luffy asked, his signature grin in place.

"How dare you?" the thief shrieked. "That was my treasure! I worked hard to steal it!"

With Luffy clinging to the side of the boat and Nami trying to force his head in, it went unnoticed by Moire that Zoro had actually heard her laughter. He decided she should smile more often. It suited her better than the emotionless expression he had met her with. She turned to look at him, still beaming.

"I guess we finally have a navigator," she declared.

"We?" the swordsman asked simply.

The smile nearly vanished into a pensive expression, her gaze turning downward. After a pregnant pause, she met his gaze again and nodded. "Yes, I suppose so."

_I decided to stick with Japanese names for the twin swords. Important weapons need names, and in true anime/manga tradition, it seems wrong for them to be named in anything _but _Japanese._


	9. Chapter 8: A Moment to Get Used To

_Hopefully no one is offended by me skipping Gaimon's island except for a paragraph summarizing Moire's reactions to the adventure. She doesn't change much there and nothing different happens, so I saw no reason to go into detail._

_REVEALS ahead! Well, partial ones. Not much action here. Just meeting Usopp, of course, and the hilarity that involves. I couldn't leave it out. I just love this part of the story._

If Moire had been having any doubts about the inherent goodness of her new captain, she would have been left with none after their brief stopover on Gaimon's island. After witnessing the peace that Luffy brought to the strange little man, she felt more confident in her choice to follow the young pirate. The inkling that there was something special about him was continuing to grow in her mind. Even if one day they had to part ways for her to achieve her goal, she felt assured that she could not only reach the Grand Line with this little crew, but also find some forgotten or missing parts of herself along the way.

Although, the current debate raging back and forth among the other three occupants of their two vessels brought Moire to seriously doubt her own sanity.

"Are we really going to the Grand Line like _this?_" Nami demanded.

"Oh, we really need meat on this ship, don't we?" Luffy responded. "Uncle Cabbage gave us plenty of fruit, but we don't have any meat!"

"I am not talking about food supplies!" the navigator shot back.

"And we don't have any sake to drink, either! How boring," Zoro, finally awake after slumbering for two days straight, chimed in.

"Oh, and we'll need a cook, and maybe a musician for entertainment!"

Nami snapped, "Those aren't our problems, either!" With a shake of her head, she sighed. "The Grand Line is the most dangerous place in the entire world, so we need to get a better ship first. We're also short on crew members and these little boats aren't equipped for a long voyage."

Luffy looked as though he was about to argue with Nami some more about what their real problems were when Moire decided to add in her two cents. "She's right, Luffy. How do you expect to eat when you can't store food or prepare it properly? And you won't do very well in the ocean when this tiny thing – " she gestured around them at the vessel " – capsizes in one of the Grand Line's storms."

Luffy looked thoughtful for a moment before turning to his new navigator. "So, what do we do then?"

"We have to be more prepared and make long-term plans. There's a village due north. We should go there first and as soon as we land, look for a better ship."

"And eat some meat!" the captain shouted, his previous pensive demeanor gone as if it never existed.

With a sigh, Moire dropped her face into her palms, shaking her head. _There's something special about him, alright._

"Regretting your choice already?" Zoro quipped.

She peeked back at him between her fingers. "Possibly. Is he always so short-sighted?"

The swordsman nodded in affirmation. "He manages to get things worked out in the end, though, and that's what counts, right?"

Moire heaved another sigh, raising her head and staring westward, to where she knew the Red Line and the entrance to the Grand Line lay. "'Tis not so easy, Zoro. Fortune can only get you so far in the Grand Line. If you had ever been there, perhaps you would know."

_That _made Zoro sit up. He leaned forward, his stare suddenly very focused.

"You've been to the Grand Line?"

_Oh, shite. _She inwardly grimaced. _He still doesn't trust me, and me having been to the Grand Line doesn't fit very well with my story of visiting family in the Organ Islands and having a bunch of brothers that taught me to fight, does it? Might as well tell him the truth._

"I was born there."

"Whaaaaat?!" another voice shouted. Luffy bounded into her field of view. "You were born in the Grand Line? So cool! What's it like? Are there monsters? Is there lots of meat? Will I – " _Bam! _"Owwww, Zoro, what'd you do that for?" the captain whined, holding his head which had just been bounced off the deck.

"Come on, that didn't hurt you, rubber boy. The better question is, if you were born in the Grand Line, then why are you here? Just who are you anyway?"

Moire shrunk back into the side of the boat that she sat against, suddenly the center of attention. Even Nami seemed to have a laser-like focus fixed on the Selkraig. She didn't like all of the interest and liked even less the thought of telling her new comrades anything about the sins of her past.

When she remained silent, avoiding his eyes, Zoro pushed further. "You're definitely not just some normal girl with a bunch of brothers. And most people who leave the Grand Line never want to go back, if they even live long enough to consider it. So, who are you?" The last words came out harsh and clipped, and Moire knew that he meant to get the answers he had wanted since they met.

She scanned the three faces around her: Zoro's harsh stare, Nami's suspicious gaze, and finally Luffy's almost awestruck gawking. It was the latter whom she focused on.

"I was born on Shillay Holm, an island in the New World. My ancestors founded it, searching for a place where they could live in peace. Back then, I suppose, the Selkraig were great warriors with abilities beyond a normal human's. My family followed the Way of Water, a doctrine of peace and harmony with the world. When I was eleven, my brother and I were kidnapped by men who had somehow learned of us and what we were once able to do. They wanted to use us for their own ends. They trained and conditioned us until we were almost their puppets, then separated us when we still didn't fully comply with their wishes. I was sent here, to the East Blue, so he and I would no longer influence each other, and I escaped. That is when I met you all."

She had spoken so quickly that she had hardly breathed through the entire discourse, leaving her almost gasping for air by the time she was done. Her eyes fell to the deck at her feet as she remembered everything she had omitted: that her brother was an adoptive sibling, the destruction of her home and slaughter of her family and neighbors, that the Organization which had held her captive was under governmental control, the sins she had committed while with them, and the blood that would forever stain her hands. The other three had fallen uncharacteristically silent as they took in the new information.

"So that's why you want to get to the Grand Line, to find your brother?" Luffy finally asked.

Moire cautiously looked back up at him and nodded slowly, almost afraid of what would happen if Luffy was somehow unhappy with her answer. She simply couldn't tell them everything, wouldn't expose them to that kind of darkness. Looking into the abyss only invited it to stare back.

Finally, the young captain grinned widely. "I want to see my brother, too! He's out there being a pirate already and he told me to find him in the Grand Line. You know, you're part of our crew now. We'll help you find him."

She blinked back in shock, her jaw a bit slack. That kind of response was not what she had been expecting, and he seemed to ignore the fact that she had essentially been molded into a weapon for someone else's use.

Just as quickly as Luffy's attention had been turned on her, it was redirected again. "Hey, Nami, about that island. Will there be lots of meat?"

Zoro wasn't so quickly distracted, however.

"You should know that I can tell you're holding something back," the swordsman told her. "But I think I know why. It sounds like there are a lot of ugly things in your past that you'd like to forget. Just don't let any of it hurt my captain or my crew, got it?"

Still at a loss for words, Moire nodded her agreement. _I promise. Even if I have to leave all of ye ere ye would prefer. I do not want to hurt innocent folk any longer._

Zoro returned the gesture, seemingly satisfied, before leaning back against the side of the boat. The former assassin sighed in relief, glad to have all of the attention off of her. She turned her gaze westward once more. Squinting against the glare of the afternoon sun, she thought she could see a very distant dark shadow, perhaps their destination.

The afternoon wore on and the vague spot on the horizon began to grow. Luffy became more and more insufferable as they neared the island until Moire was certain she would stab him if it took much longer to reach land. He was bounding back and forth between their boat and Nami's, all the while firing off questions and random observations at an inhumanly rapid pace. Somehow, Zoro had fallen back to sleep amid the chaos, while Nami was doing her best to simply ignore the hyperactive captain.

As Luffy ran by her once more, Moire stuck a foot out and smirked when he fell face first into the deck.

"Ow! Mori, why would you do that?" Luffy cried.

Despite the fact that physical blows did little damage to the rubber man, Moire punched him soundly in the head. "Idiot! It's Moire!"

"You're so mean!" he whined, but his sad and sorry manner didn't last long as he suddenly became excited. "And you hit really hard! When we get to land, I want to fight with you!"

Moire rolled her eyes to the heavens as if asking what she could have possibly done to deserve this, Luffy returning to his boat-hopping and endless prattle.

Fortunately for the Selkraig's sanity, it didn't take much longer to reach the shore. They weighed anchor in a sheltered little cove where the land fell abruptly into the water. A trail led up and away from the water into lightly wooded and rolling lowlands. It was altogether peaceful. Or, it had been until Luffy arrived.

Moire leapt lightly from their boat, glad for the opportunity to stretch her legs. She ignored Luffy expressing his surprise at finding an island and Nami's indignation at the implied slight to her navigational skills. Zoro was suddenly beside her, stretching his tall form as far as he could reach.

"Been a long time since I last stood on solid ground," he sighed.

Moire resisted the urge to elbow him in the ribs as she shot back, "If you hadn't slept the entire time, you could have visited Gaimon's island. Hmm?" She and the swordsman both seemed to notice it at the same time. Their hands strayed to weapons as they focused on the treeline above them.

"Careful. We're being watched," Zoro warned the other two.

"Huh? By who? Where are they? Do they have meat?" Luffy immediately began looking around frantically for the interlopers.

Before anyone could react, tiny projectiles shot at Luffy's feet and he danced madly to avoid the rapid-fire barrage. With a cry, Nami bolted for her ship as numerous skull-and-crossbones flags were raised from the bushes.

Moire was not as amused by the display as Luffy was, and definitely didn't find herself impressed when a boy about Luffy's age with bushy black hair and a very long nose emerged claiming to be the leader of an "invincible nation of pirates." He didn't look much like a fighter to her. It was the mention of an army of eighty million men that finally did him in.

"You expect us to believe that?" Nami shouted up at him.

The boy didn't hesitate to begin freaking out. "She knows!"

"Now we know," Moire snickered. The display was beginning to become amusing.

"What?! He was lying?" Luffy cried.

Moire socked Luffy again. "That's for being so gullible! And to think you're our captain."

Backpedaling rapidly, the "Great Captain Usopp" started trying in vain to salvage the situation. "Eighty million might have been an exaggeration, but I still have a great many men under my command!"

Nami smirked. "My guess is three."

Three kids, no taller than Moire's hip, burst from the bushes holding a pirate flag in each hand, screaming, "She does know!" They threw down their flags and booked it for safety.

Moire picked up one of the projectiles that had been shot at Luffy's feet, finding a small, polished metal ball not dissimilar to old pistol ammunition. They obviously hadn't been fired from any gun, however. "What is a pirate doing using a slingshot?" she wondered.

With a great belly laugh, Luffy declared, "Hey, you're pretty funny!"

Usopp seemed offended by the strawhat laughing at him. He drew his slingshot and loaded it, aiming straight for Luffy. "You had better stop laughing, or you'll find out why they call me 'Proud Usopp' and not 'Pushover Usopp.'"

None of the pirates on the beach seemed particularly threatened, Luffy least of all. "Now that you've drawn your 'pistol,' are you going to use it?" he asked. "Guns aren't for threats, they're for actions. Are you willing to risk your life?"

Zoro thumbed the hilt of his white sword, exposing just an inch of the blade while Moire palmed a dagger that Usopp had never seen drawn. The action was almost unconscious on her part as she provided support for her crewmates.

"I can assure you, we're real pirates," Zoro called. "Consider your next move carefully."

After a moment's hesitation, Usopp faltered, sweat beading on his face. He dropped the pellet from the slingshot and fell to his knees. Luffy and Zoro shared a glance before bursting into laughter, Moire raising an eyebrow at them in confusion. She had been seriously considering the possibility of letting that dagger fly.

After further introductions, during which Usopp made a very undignified journey down the hill by rolling and Luffy revealed not only knowing Red-Haired Shanks, but also Usopp's father, Yasopp, the self-declared liar led them into town where they stopped at a small tavern for lunch. Moire listened quietly as Luffy regaled Usopp with tales of his sharpshooting father and found herself feeling a bit sorry for the boy. It had been years since he'd seen his father, yet he expressed nothing but pride for his father.

Nami was the one who brought everyone down to earth, mentioning their need for a ship to sail to the Grand Line.

"Oh! Sounds like a big adventure!" Usopp exclaimed. "So cool! And you're looking for crewmembers too?"

"Yep," Luffy replied around a mouthful of food.

Usopp proceeded to explain to the quartet that there was only one place in the village where they might find a ship: a mansion outside of town whose owner, a weak and sickly young woman around his age, also had a ship. Moire was certain that she was not alone in feeling sympathy for the girl, whose parents had died just over a year before of the illness. No amount of inheritance money could possibly alleviate that kind of pain.

"Never mind," Nami sighed. "We'll search for a ship somewhere else."

"Okay!" Luffy agreed. "But we're not in a hurry. I still want some more meat!"

"Oh, yeah, you said earlier that you're looking for crewmates, right?" Usopp interjected quietly.

"Is there someone who wants to be our nakama?" Luffy wondered.

Usopp stood, pointing to himself. "Let me be the captain, and I'll join you!"

"Never mind," all four said at once, much to the consternation of Usopp.

"What kind of attitude is that?" he shouted. Then he seemed to take notice of the clock on the door and dashed away, telling them he had forgotten to do something. The four pirates blinked after him in wonder.

Moire had just discovered, to her delight, that the little restaurant served what looked to be a delectable seven-layered chocolate cake and ordered a slice when the three boys from the shore appeared, demanding to know where their captain was. A moment later, Luffy set his mug down and smacked his lips.

"Yum! What delicious meat!"

The boys reacted with shock and horror, assuming Luffy was talking about eating the  
"captain". Zoro only prodded them further, telling the boys that they had, indeed, eaten Usopp.

Moire burst out laughing when the boys stared at Nami with enormous eyes and screamed, "Onibaba!" The redheaded thief couldn't berate both Zoro _and _Moire, both of whom were nearly falling over in their seats from mirth, no matter how hard she tried.

Wiping tears of laughter from the corners of her eyes, Moire thought, _I could really get used to moments like these._


End file.
